Scientists have discovered that bowel cancer cells can transform into skin or muscle cells, allowing them to spread more aggressively. This breakthrough offers hope for treating the increasing rates of the disease, especially among young people.
A study conducted by the Cancer Research UK Scotland Centre and the University of Edinburgh revealed that a critical step in aggressive bowel cancer involves cells losing their original identity, a process known as cellular plasticity. Researchers found that the disease spreads when colonic cells begin to resemble squamous cells, which form skin, or muscle cells.
