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Cancer-cell death ironed out

Ferroptosis is a form of cell death. The finding that cells that have certain mutations in the Hippo signalling pathway are susceptible to ferroptosis might offer a way to treat a cancer called mesothelioma.
  1. Dean Fennell

    1. Dean Fennell is at the Mesothelioma Research Programme, Leicester Cancer Research Centre, University of Leicester, and at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester LE2 7LX, UK.

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In the late twentieth century, there was a rise in a type of cancer called mesothelioma, which is caused by exposure to asbestos used in building materials. Mesothelioma often arises decades after exposure, accounting for tens of thousands of deaths annually worldwide1. Even with the treatments currently available, it is inevitably fatal. There is therefore an urgent need to develop more effective therapies for this type of cancer. Writing in Nature, Wu et al.2 report that mutations in a cell-signalling pathway that commonly occur in mesothelioma create a tumour vulnerability that might be targeted to treat this disease.

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Nature 572, 314-315 (2019)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-02218-y

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Competing Interests

D.F. has received consultation fees from Inventiva.

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