Exploiting mitotic errors for cancer therapy
Over a lifetime, around 10 quadrillion cell divisions take place in the human body, but not all of these divisions follow the pre-programmed rules of mitosis. It is these abnormal cell divisions that form the basis of cancer.
Are cancer cells always in mitosis?
Mitosis is the process by which a single cell divides into two daughter cells. The two cells have identical genetic content of the parent cell. As we will see later, cancer cells don’t always follow this rule.
What does mitosis mean in cancer?
A measure of how fast cancer cells are dividing and growing. To find the mitotic rate, the number of cells dividing in a certain amount of cancer tissue is counted. Mitotic rate is used to help find the stage of melanoma (a type of skin cancer) and other types of cancer.
What disease is caused by mitosis?
Mistakes during mitosis lead to the production of daughter cells with too many or too few chromosomes, a feature known as aneuploidy. Nearly all aneuploidies that arise due to mistakes in meiosis or during early embryonic development are lethal, with the notable exception of trisomy 21 in humans.
How do cancer cells spread?
When cancer spreads, it’s called metastasis. In metastasis, cancer cells break away from where they first formed, travel through the blood or lymph system, and form new tumors in other parts of the body. Cancer can spread to almost anywhere in the body. But it commonly moves into your bones, liver, or lungs.
What does cancer drugs play in interrupting mitosis of cancer cells?
These drugs disrupt microtubules, which are structures that pull the chromosomes apart when a cell divides. Mitotic inhibitors are used in cancer treatment, because cancer cells are able to grow and eventually spread through the body (metastasize) through continuous mitotic division.
Is malignancy always cancer?
Although some tumors are benign and consist of noncancerous cells, others are malignant. Malignant tumors are cancerous, and the cells can spread to other parts of the body.