European Journal of Cancer: Highlights of Issue 41:01

Focus on melanoma

Better survival amongst vaccinated malignant melanoma patients

The prognosis of malignant melanoma patients vaccinated against tuberculosis and/or smallpox is better than unvaccinated patients. According to Grange and colleagues reporting in this issue, these findings add to the growing evidence that immunological events early in life can have a lasting impact on the risk of developing a cancer and can affect the course of disease in those in whom it is not prevented. To explain their findings, the researchers propose a hypothesis where human endogenous retroviruses play a key role. These studies provide hope that the human body is not defenceless against cancer and that simple vaccination and effective immunotherapeutic strategies against established cancers may not be far away, they concluded.

Use of sun-beds by adolescents

Adolescent-targeted strategies to reduce sun-bed use should be tested for their effectiveness according to authors reporting in this issue. Lazovich and Forster review the use of sun-beds amongst adolescents and found that - despite the known health risks - the practice is popular in Europe and the United States. Prevalence was higher amongst females as well as amongst those with friends and family who had positive attitudes towards tanning. Strategies such as pricing, licensure, advertising restrictions and media campaigns should be tested, they said.

'Microcompetition'-re-allocation of a rare resource

Non-genetic alterations can be the cause of abnormal gene expression, according to a new theory called 'Microcompetition'. The theory proposes "Foreign DNA can compete with cellular DNA for cellular transcription factors resulting in abnormal gene expression and disease". It was proposed by Hanan Polansky and is discussed in this issue by Dr. Raxit J. Jariwalla. This explains the abnormal gene expression observed for many wild-type genes in cancer. It is the limited availability of transcription factors that is important. Foreign DNA, such as viral DNA, competes for these rare resources, causing their re-allocation, he said. "Observations from a large number of published studies support the predictions and validate the theory".

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