Exploring liver cancer's weak spot as a new target for therapy

More people are dying of liver cancer than ever before. The steep rise of diagnosed cases since the 1980s and the lack of effective treatments are the likely cause for the poor survival rates. The snowballing numbers of people diagnosed with liver cancer are coupled with an increase of risk factors, such as obesity. Obesity can result in a condition called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Fat is deposited in the liver, leading to inflammation, scarring and, in rare cases, liver cancer.

This sustained stress on the liver can “hijack” the normal stress response of liver cells, making them more likely to turn cancerous.  Professor Raul Mendez and his team are now trying to find out how this process works and whether it can be targeted with drugs. Professor Mendez is particularly interested in a group of proteins called CPEBs. These proteins are master regulators of many cellular functions. Understanding how these proteins enable tumour growth could hold the key for new anti-cancer therapies.