A study in mice and human tissue has shown how melanoma spreads through the body using the host's immune system for its own purposes.

The results of the new project will help not only to better understand the mechanisms of development of malignant tumors, but also to create new drugs for skin cancer..

Promising work published in Cell Magazine is sponsored by staff at King's College London and Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) with support from Cancer Research UK.

In the course of numerous experiments, scientists analyzed the structure and function of tumor cells, trying to calculate all the factors that work in favor of cancer..

It turned out that cancer cells release biologically active molecules that interact with the immune system and send it special signals for the unhindered proliferation of tumor cells..

The authors of the project hope that in the future, their discovery will make it possible to purposefully suppress melanoma, stopping the formation of secondary tumors..

Complex signaling mechanism of melanoma.

Experiments with human tumor samples and animal models have shown that the aggressiveness of melanoma is highly dependent on the protein myosin II. Being present in high concentrations inside tumor cells, it helps them move around, capturing new organs and tissues.. Moreover, myosin II stimulates the release of molecules that " They are one of the clever means of protecting cancer from the body's immune system..

These molecules seem to be talking to macrophages - specialized immune cells designed to devour foreign bodies and cellular debris..

When macrophages receive the chemical signals from melanoma, myosin II protein reprograms immune cells to open the way for cancer.

Another important effect of myosin II is to increase the permeability of the vascular wall, allowing tumors from the extravascular space to seep into the blood, through which melanoma reaches distant organs and gives metastases..

How to disarm invasive cancer?

According to Professor Vicky Sanz-Moreno of QMUL, this study reveals the main secrets of melanoma, its interactions with the environment, and provides insights into how to prevent the spread of skin cancer.. Further experiments helped to discover another important substance in the myosin II cascade - this is interleukin 1A. This signaling protein increases the invasiveness of melanoma.

When researchers suppressed myosin II activity, interleukin 1A production was reduced in both diseased mice and human melanoma samples..

“By using drugs that target myosin II or interleukin 1A production, we can make melanoma less aggressive and significantly slow down its growth by making treatment easier,” says Professor Sanz-Moreno..

In search of a new combination therapy for melanoma.

As the authors of the project explained, today there are already drugs aimed at the activity of myosin II.. But they are used for other diseases - for example, for the treatment of glaucoma. Professor Sanz-Moreno is currently preparing to test existing myosin II blockers in combination with modern anti-cancer agents to test the effectiveness, compatibility and safety of the therapy..

The potential for using interleukin 1A inhibitors to reduce the aggressiveness of melanoma is clear. Clinical trials of such drugs are already underway for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer..

“We would love to know if interleukin 1A inhibitors can be used in combination with other targeted biologics,” the authors say..

Independent British expert Professor Richard Marais of Manchester Cancer Research UK said the findings could be especially helpful for those patients who return to skin cancer after treatment..

“When we remove melanoma, there is always a risk that some malignant cells will remain and give a relapse of the disease.. We can now develop therapies that can stop the spread of residual elements after surgery, helping patients live longer, ”said Marais.

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