Endostatin can prevent head and neck cancer cells from developing new blood vessels and can hinder the mechanism that cancer cells use to migrate throughout the body and invade other tissues, say researchers in the March-April issue of Anticancer Research.
Researchers at The Ohio State University’s College of Dentistry investigated endostatin’s effects on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cellular functions that are essential for tumor progression. They found that endostatin treatment reduced by one-half the number of invasive head and neck cancer cells and reduced the number of cells capable of migration by one-quarter. Migrating cells receive a chemical signal before moving in a directed fashion throughout the body. Invasive cells migrate, and they produce an enzyme that digests the membranes of the cells they are trying to take over.
"About half of all people with head and neck cancers die as a result of local disease recurrence," said Dr. Susan Mallery, the study’s lead author and a professor in the Ohio State College of Dentistry’s department of oral and maxillofacial surgery and pathology. "Another major concern is patient compliance with follow-up treatment after the original tumor is removed.
"It’s possible that one day doctors could treat these patients with an implanted delivery device that dispenses a sustained, therapeutic drug concentration right where it is needed the most—where the tumor was," she continued. "Such a treatment option not only provides a constant therapeutic drug level, it also eliminates concerns regarding patient compliance."
