A Historical Perspective on Cancer
نویسنده
چکیده
It is proposed that cancer results from the breakdown of universal control mechanisms which developed in mutual association as part of the historical process that brought individual cells together into multi-cellular communities. By systematically comparing the genomes of uni-celled with multi-celled organisms, one might be able to identify the most promising sites for intervention aimed at restoring the damaged control mechanisms and thereby arresting the cancer. More or less by definition, a cancerous cell is one that grows and reproduces uncontrollably. Of course, this characterization presupposes that the cell in question lives within a multi-celled organism — a community of cells. The identical behavior would appear perfectly normal for a cell existing in isolation. But there is more to cancer than uncontrolled growth; for this behavior occurs in association with another trait which — in itself — would not seem to be related to growth at all: loss of differentiation. Why should a “histologic” characteristic like (lack of) differentiation be correlated in this way with a “dynamical” characteristic like growth rate? I believe that, far from being necessary for reasons of biochemistry or cellular dynamics, this association is historical in origin. Let us try to imagine the transformation that took place when the first multicellular organisms coalesced from collections of cells living in relative isolation from each other. * The main idea exposed herein occurred to me some 20 years ago. I tried once to get it published, but failed. After some hesitation, I am posting it here in the hope that the historical viewpoint it utilizes may still be of some use to people trying to understand cancer.
منابع مشابه
Technology and Urban Form: A Philosophical and Historical Perspective
Urban form has undergone tremendous changes throughout history. These changes have stemmed from various causes. Technology has been one of the most influential forces in changing the face of cities, leaving different marks on the city form. In fact, technology has gained an increasingly more important and integrative role in bringing changes to the urban form. In addition, recent plethora of de...
متن کاملSpermatozoa: A Historical Perspective
The 100,000th scientific article on the subject of spermatozoa was recently published. Many studies have evaluated the characteristics of this important cell leading to great discoveries. Since its first observation and description in 1677, many important characteristics have been described regarding this highly fascinating gamete. In this review, our objective has been to provide a historical ...
متن کاملText Screening (Censorship) in Iran: A Historical Perspective
Censorship has a long history in Iran that has interfered with text production, i.e., original writing as well as translation. This phenomenon seems to have marked the borderline between the government and the ‘enlightened’ intellectuals throughout history in Iran. Different governments have delineated ‘redlines’ for authors and translators and dealt with these constructors of culture based on ...
متن کاملCancer, Covid-19 and the perspective of treatments.
Covid-19 pandemic had global effects on chronic patients, health systems, and the future of treatments. Among the chronic patients, people who have cancer are identifying as a vulnerable group because of their malignancy and suppressive treatments which weaken their immune system. The present descriptive-analytic article, which is conducted from studying various recent articles in Persian and E...
متن کاملذخیره در منابع من
با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید
عنوان ژورنال:
دوره شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 2000