Stress Can Help Kill Cancer Cells

Interesting article out of The Brookings Register in South Dakota.
Researchers at South Dakota State University "...are investigating whether "stressing" cancer cells can make cancer radiation treatment and chemotherapy more effective. "

According to the article...

"Professor Xiangming Guan of SDSU's Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences explained that when cancer cells are tired out, they are easier to kill using free radicals, the basic mechanism behind radiation and some chemotherapy drugs."

Guan goes on to explain....

"We have also demonstrated that the stressed cancer was more sensitive to radiation treatment in several different human cancer cells such as ovarian cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, and skin cancer ."

Interesting idea....and it makes intuitive sense. We all know that a stressed organism is more susceptible to illness. It only makes sense that this principle would apply at the cellular level. Except in this case scientists would be applying this principle to make 'stressed' cancer cells 'sick'.