How arsenic turns stem cells into cancer cells and spurs tumor growth

Researchers have discovered how arsenic exposure can turn normal stem cells into cancer stem cells and spur tumor growth. Michael Waalkes and his team at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health, had shown previously that normal cells become cancerous when they are treated with inorganic arsenic. This new study demonstrates that when these cancer cells are placed near, but not in contact with, normal stem cells, the normal cells rapidly acquire the characteristics of cancer stem cells. This shows that malignant cells are able to send molecular signals through a semi-permeable membrane and turn the normal stem cells into cancer stem cells. “Using stem cells to answer questions about disease is an important new growing area of research. Stem cells help to explain a lot about carcinogenesis, and it is highly likely that stem cells are contributing factors to other chronic diseases,” Waalkes said.