Skin cancer breakthrough: Scientists identify the trigger that turns melanoma cells into invasive killers raising hopes of new treatments

  • In its early stages melanoma can be removed and a patient's life saved
  • Once melanoma cells invade the blood they can spread to other organs
  • Scientists found the trigger causing melanoma cells to travel to the blood
  • They hope findings will lead to treatments to catch it in its early stages 

By Madlen Davies for MailOnline

Published: 11:32 EST, 4 August 2015 | Updated: 16:42 EST, 5 August 2015

Scientists have discovered how skin cancer cells in their earliest form transform into deadly killers that invade and spread through the body.

They discovered the precise trigger that turns melanoma cells into invasive agents that get into the bloodstream or lymph vessels.

This means they hope to pinpoint exactly the moment when a melanoma cell becomes lethal, they said, paving the way for new treatments.

Over the past three decades, more people have had skin cancer than all other cancers combined, according to Skin Cancer Foundation Statistics.

Scientists have discovered how skin cancer cells in their early stages transform into deadly killers that invade and spread through the body. Pictured are melanoma cells that have spread underneath a miscroscope

Scientists have discovered how skin cancer cells in their early stages transform into deadly killers that invade and spread through the body. Pictured are melanoma cells that have spread underneath a miscroscope

And each year 132,000 melanoma skin cancers occur globally, according to the World Health Organisation.

If melanoma is caught in time, it can be removed and the patient's life saved.

But once melanoma invades the bloodstream, and is able to spread to other parts of the body, aggressive treatment must be used to stop it.

Now, Israeli researchers have revealed how and when the cell transforms into an aggressive invader.

Melanomas originate in the epidermis, the outermost layers of skin, said Dr Carmit Levy, of Tel Aviv University.

But in its aggressive form it will invade the dermis, a lower layer, where it eventually invades the bloodstream or lymph vessels, causing the cancer to spread to other organs of the body.

'But before invading the dermis, melanoma cells surprisingly extend upward, then switch directions to invade,' he said.

HOW TO SPOT A MELANOMA 

Melanoma can appear anywhere on the body, but they most commonly appear on the back, legs, arms and face and even underneath a nail.

Though less common, they often spread to other organs in the body, making them more deadly. 

The most common sign is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole. 

Melanomas most commonly appear on the back, legs, arms and face and even underneath a nail

Melanomas most commonly appear on the back, legs, arms and face and even underneath a nail

Signs to look out for include a mole that is:

  • getting bigger
  • changing shape
  • changing colour
  • bleeding or becoming crusty
  • itchy or painful

A helpful way to tell the difference between a normal mole and a melanoma is the ABCDE checklist:

Asymmetrical – melanomas have two very different halves and are an irregular shape.

Border – melanomas have a notched or ragged border.

Colours – melanomas will be a mix of two or more colours.

Diameter – melanomas are often larger than 6mm (1/4 inch) in diameter.

Enlargement or elevation – a mole that changes size over time is more likely to be a melanoma. 

It occurred to him that there might be a trigger in the environment of the skin that made the melanoma cells 'invasive'.

After collecting samples of normal skin cells and melanoma cells from patients at hospitals around Israel, the researchers mixed normal and cancerous cells.

Then they analysed the expression of genes in the cells to study the cancer's behaviour as it travels through the skin.

They found that the skin's environment triggered melanoma cells to travel to deeper layers of the skin.

'Normal skin cells are not supposed to "travel,"' said Dr Levy. 'We found that when melanoma is situated at the top layer, a trigger sends it down to the dermis and then further down to invade blood vessels.

'If we could stop it at the top layer, block it from invading the bloodstream, we could stop the progression of the cancer.' 

The researchers found that when melanoma cells came into direct contact with the remote layer of the epidermis, it triggered the activation of 'notch signalling'.

This turns on a set of genes that promote changes in melanoma cells, causing them to become invasive.

According to the study, when a molecule expressed on a cell membrane - a spike on the surface of a cell called a ligand - comes into contact with a melanoma cell, it triggers the transformation of melanoma into an invasive, lethal agent.

'When I saw the results, I jumped out of the room and shouted 'We got it!"' Dr Levy said.

'Now that we know the triggers of melanoma transformation and the kind of signalling that leads to that transformation, we know what to block.

'The trick was to solve the mystery, and we did. There are many drugs in existence that can block the Notch signalling responsible for that transformation.

'Maybe, in the future, people will be able to rub some substance on their skin as a prevention measure.'

Dr Levy will continue his research and hopes to provide medical professionals with another tool to analyse the different stages of melanoma.

Dr. Levy is continuing to explore the research with the end goal of providing medical professionals with another tool of analysis of different stages of melanoma.

Catching the cancer at its beginning stages will save lives, he concluded.

Each year 132,000 melanoma skin cancers occur globally, according to World Health Organization figures

Each year 132,000 melanoma skin cancers occur globally, according to World Health Organization figures

 

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