stress can wreak havoc on the body, from weakening the immune system to causing sleep disturbances. and, according to a new study, high levels of a stress hormone could cause sleeping cancer cells to reawaken.
the
study,
published in the journal science translational medicine, found that when norepinephrine — a stress hormone — spikes in the body, it triggers a series of events. researchers found that high levels of norepinephrine causes the activation of cells called neutrophils, which in turn release a special type of lipid that can reactivate dormant cancer tumours.
because tumour recurrence can happen years after someone’s seemingly successful cancer treatment,
researchers believe
the reactivation of dormant cells “is largely responsible for this phenomenon.” scientists have been trying to
better understand the mechanisms
that prompt cancers to return for years.
“my hope is that we can develop targeting therapy to break the mechanisms we described, and thus substantially prolong tumour remission,” says dr. dmitry gabrilovich, chief scientist, cancer immunology at astrazeneca and an author of the study.
for this study, scientists primarily based in the u.s. looked into mice and humans. mice were injected with dormant lung cancer cells and put in a small room, causing them to feel trapped and stressed. the research team gave a subset of mice a beta blocker used to for blood pressure, and found that the rodents who received the drugs did not have their tumours reactivated.