eEF2K

In my opinion, the most difficult problem associated with cancer is the fact that treatment, that can effectively kill cancer cells, also kills healthy cells. We use a nuclear weapon instead of gun to kill a bear.

On the other hand, there are some drugs able to target attack cancer cells. However, this drugs are not a cure too. Their action is based on genes and proteins that overexpressed in cancer cells, but not in healthy cells. Yes, it is an exit from the situation, but not effective enought that we could say that we can cure cancer.

But recently scientists from University of Southampton became one step closer to achievment of this difficult goal. Because of frequent process of division, cancer cells require more oxygen and nutrients and thus they starving more often than usual cells. Prosessor Cris Proud discovered that there is a cellular protein, eEF2K, that allows cancel to survive starvation, but normal cells do not require it to survive. Professor Proud and the team are now working with other labs, including pharmaceutical companies, to develop and test drugs that block eEF2K, which could potentially be used to treat cancer in the future.