Cancer
REDISCOVERING
BIOLOGY
Cell Biology and Cancer
“ We now understand a lot about cancer. We know that it results from a series of genetic changes having to do with cell division and growth control and genetic instability, mortality, the suicide mechanism in cells; the ability of the cells to migrate; the ability of the cells to attract to them a blood supply. And so that’s pretty profound that in a few sentences one can summarize a sophisticated, fundamental understanding of what a cancer is.” LELAND HARTWELL
Molecular to Global
Perspectives
Introduction
A multicellular organism can thrive only when all its cells function in accordance with the rules that govern cell growth and reproduction. Why does a normal cell suddenly become a “rebel,” breaking the rules, dividing recklessly, invading other tissues, usurping resources, and in some cases eventually killing the body in which it lives? To understand how and why cells rebel, we need to understand the normal functions of cell growth and reproduction. From the midnineteenth century on, research in cell biology, biochemistry, and molecular biology has provided astonishingly detailed information about the molecules and processes that allow cells to divide, grow, differentiate, and perform their essential functions. This basic knowledge of cell biology has also led to practical discoveries about the mechanisms of cancer. Specific molecules that control the progression of a cell through the cell cycle regulate cell growth. An understanding of normal cell cycle processes and how those processes go awry provides key information about the mechanisms that trigger cancer. Loss of control of the cell cycle is one of the critical steps in the development of cancer. Although cancer comprises at least 100 different diseases, all cancer cells share one important characteristic: they are abnormal cells in which the processes regulating normal cell division are disrupted. That is, cancer develops from changes that cause normal
BIOLOGY
Cell Biology and Cancer
“ We now understand a lot about cancer. We know that it results from a series of genetic changes having to do with cell division and growth control and genetic instability, mortality, the suicide mechanism in cells; the ability of the cells to migrate; the ability of the cells to attract to them a blood supply. And so that’s pretty profound that in a few sentences one can summarize a sophisticated, fundamental understanding of what a cancer is.” LELAND HARTWELL
Molecular to Global
Perspectives
Introduction
A multicellular organism can thrive only when all its cells function in accordance with the rules that govern cell growth and reproduction. Why does a normal cell suddenly become a “rebel,” breaking the rules, dividing recklessly, invading other tissues, usurping resources, and in some cases eventually killing the body in which it lives? To understand how and why cells rebel, we need to understand the normal functions of cell growth and reproduction. From the midnineteenth century on, research in cell biology, biochemistry, and molecular biology has provided astonishingly detailed information about the molecules and processes that allow cells to divide, grow, differentiate, and perform their essential functions. This basic knowledge of cell biology has also led to practical discoveries about the mechanisms of cancer. Specific molecules that control the progression of a cell through the cell cycle regulate cell growth. An understanding of normal cell cycle processes and how those processes go awry provides key information about the mechanisms that trigger cancer. Loss of control of the cell cycle is one of the critical steps in the development of cancer. Although cancer comprises at least 100 different diseases, all cancer cells share one important characteristic: they are abnormal cells in which the processes regulating normal cell division are disrupted. That is, cancer develops from changes that cause normal