Study reveals cancer’s ‘infinite’ ability to evolve and survive

Scientists say an unprecedented analysis of how cancers grow has revealed an “almost infinite” ability of tumours to evolve and survive.

The results of tracking lung cancers for five years left the research team “in awe” and “surprised” at the formidable force they were up against, concluding we need more focus on prevention, with a “universal” cure unlikely any time soon.

Cancer Research UK said early detection was crucially important.

The study, entitled TracerX, provides the most in-depth analysis of how cancers evolve and what causes them to spread.  They evolve and change over time, are not fixed and immutable.  They can become more aggressive and better at evading the immune system, and are able to spread around the body.

TracerX tracked the diversity and how it changes over time inside lung cancer patients and say the results could apply across different types of cancer.

Professor Charles Swanton from the Francis Crick Institute and University College London said “That has never been done before at this scale.  It has surprised me how adaptable tumours can be.

“I don’t want to sound too depressing about this, but I think – given the almost infinite possibilities in which a tumour can evolve, and the very large number of cells in a late-stage tumour, which could be several hundred billion cells – then achieving cures in all patients with late-stage disease is a formidable task.”

Dr David Crosby, head of prevention and early detection at Cancer Research UK, said “The exciting results emerging from TracerX improve our understanding that cancer is a disease which evolves as it progresses, meaning that late-stage cancers can become very hard to treat successfully.

“This underscores the crucial importance of further research to help us to detect cancers at the earliest stages of their development or even better, to prevent them from happening at all.”

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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (jacquelinevance@chadlaw.co.uk), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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