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Virtually all cancer treatments used today also damage normal cells, causing the toxic side effects associated with cancer treatment. A cooperative research team led by researchers at Dartmouth's Norris Cotton Cancer Center devised a strategy to target cancer cells while sparing normal cells. This strategy capitalizes on the fact that processes that allow a cell to form a tumor, such as loss or mutation of the tumor suppressor NF1, also expose vulnerabilities in the tumor cell that are absent in normal cells. These vulnerabilities are known as the "Achilles heel" of cancer cells. Although much is known about the mutations that cause a cell to become malignant, little is known about the vulnerabilities of cells with these mutations. The team has published new findings on this Achilles heel found in cells that have been rewired by NF1 loss.

See original article at: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170720160604.htm