Molecule Common to Cancer & Arthritis

A molecule that helps cells stick together is significantly over-produced in two very different diseases — rheumatoid arthritis and a variety of cancers, including breast and brain tumors, concludes a new study. Stephen W. Wyers, from the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center (Washington DC, USA), and colleagues have identified cadherin-11, which is overexpressed in 15% of breast cancers and in many glioblastomas, and may be a major contributor to pancreatic cancer as well. Further, one subset of the study investigators developed a small molecule agent to shut down cadherin-11 in cancer; and a related group devised and antibody that worked in animal models of tumors that made cadherin-11.  The study authors submit that: "These data suggest that [cadherin-11] is important for malignant progression, and is a therapeutic target in arthritis and cancer with the potential for rapid clinical translation.”