No cancer pills

1998/06/01 Kortabarria Olabarria, Beñardo - Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Osasuna

Jesus Mari Karrera knows little about pills and laboratories, but he does know about cancer. In fact, he has been working for 22 years at the Oncological Hospital and during that time this oriotarra has had the opportunity to know everything. With the most pressing urgency, one could think that the news of the cocktail of miracle drugs would generate a stir in places like Onkologikoa. According to Jesús Mari Carrera, however, the reality has been very different, since “many times similar news comes out”.

These research on angiogenesis has long been known and the theory has its logic. When the tumor begins to develop, it must acquire food, which it does in two ways: on the one hand, strengthening it and increasing it; on the other, creating new veins.

Angiogenesis is based on the second, that is, its function is to prevent the ability to generate new veins. Angiostatin and endostatin, both byproducts of sometostatin, appear to have the ability to prevent the appearance of new veins. Jesus Mari Carrera, however, has read the news with great caution.

“So far different pathways to attack tumors have been followed: surgery (cutting tumors), radiation therapy (hindering the growth of bad cells in a given area) and chemotherapy (hindering the growth of bad cells). Hormonal therapy and immunotherapy can be used to help these most common ways, among others. And these are the channels that have so far been approved and tested.

If angiogenesis had a real ability to eliminate tumors, it would provide at least two advantages: there would be no intervention or toxicity.”

However, the Oriotarra considers that the news is still far from real.

“Well, keep in mind that what has been done so far has only been done in laboratories, and in that sense are experimental drugs. In addition, so far it has only been used in rats, and rats are not human beings. It remains to be seen if the product is so simple and efficient.”

Jesús Mari Carrera does not read the investigation, only knows what has appeared in the newspapers, and the read does not give too much credibility.

“It seems too simple to me. To 10 rats has been added this product of great influence, to another 10 the physiological serum (salt water), has not been attacked at the same level and technically not serious. In addition, the number of samples is very small, 10 rats are very scarce. There is no talk of the type of tumor that has been brought into these rats, nor of its degree of disappearance… and you cannot know what effect it will have on humans.”

Unfortunately, as he says, Jesus Mari Carrera looks with distrust at the new and recommends acting prudently.

“When there are so many people who suffer and it still takes many years to see if everything is true or not, it is not ethical to give the news. This kind of news should be expected and carefully taken. The research, in principle, does not seem out of place, but there are still too many doubts to throw it suddenly. Unfortunately I don't think that in the short term we run out of work because what we don't know about tumors is more than what we know. In the last 10 years, the first steps have been taken towards specific cell structures. Cancer is a hard, difficult, and complicated disease, too much to resolve with two drugs taken abruptly. It is important to have treatment for tumor production, but it is more important to eradicate the disease by working on prevention.”