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cancer cells are “smart” and always evolving and mutating, says dr. yan liu, phd, a leader in the field of blood cancer research out of feinberg school of medicine at northwestern university in chicago.
his comments give some context to news of the death of “supernatural” actor nicki aycox at age 47. her sister-in-law made the announcement on facebook on nov. 17 , noting that aycox “was definitely a fighter and everyone who knew her loved her.”
while the cause of death was not shared, the actor had been public about her diagnosis and treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (aml) in 2021. she became very ill and thought she had covid-19 until she ended up in hospital where tests confirmed leukemia. earlier this year, she posted on instagram that she was having treatments for aml again.
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aml is a cancer of the blood and bone marrow, and the most common type of acute leukemia in adults. as an acute cancer, it gets worse fast if it is not treated, according to the national cancer institute.
only 23 per cent of people diagnosed with aml will live for at least five years after the diagnosis, the canadian cancer society says . it’s one of the rarer blood cancers, with 1,090 canadians diagnosed in 2016, according to the most recent statistics, and 1,184 canadians dying from the disease in 2017. although the exact cause of aml isn’t known, risk factors include certain genetic conditions like blood disorders, smoking and high doses of radiation.
for the study, recently published in the journal blood , liu’s team blocked prl2 in mice that were transplanted with aml cells, showing that inhibiting the prl2 activity actually decreased the cancer and extended overall survival in the mice. further biochemical studies also demonstrated that prl2 increases the activity of the problematic flt3 protein as well in aml progression.
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nadine prevost, director of research and community support with the leukemia and lymphoma society of canada (llsc), is also encouraged by advancements in treatments and mitigating the side-effects. but she stresses the need for peer support and mental health services that help people going through what can be terrifying ups and downs of aml.
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her organization is calling for mental health services to be part of the cancer care system to link people with professionals and get them the help they need to adapt to their “new normal.” the llsc has a video on what that “new normal” may look like .