Study details a link between inflammation and cancer
A new study from MIT reveals one reason why people who suffer from chronic inflammatory diseases such as colitis have a higher risk of mutations that cause cancer. The researchers also found that exposure to DNA-damaging chemicals after a bout of inflammation boosts these mutations even more, further increasing cancer risk. The findings confirm a longstanding theory about why inflammation and cancer are linked, and offer possible ways to help prevent and treat cancer, says Bevin Engelward, an MIT professor of biological engineering and senior author of a Jan. 15 PLoS Genetics paper describing the findings. “Chronic inflammation drives a lot of cancers, including pancreatic, esophageal, liver, and colon cancers,” says Engelward, who is also deputy director of the MIT Center for Environmental Health Sciences. “There are things that people with chronic inflammation could do to avoid exposures that would be problematic for them. For example, certain foods lead to DNA damage...