An Italian scientist working in the United States has made an advance in human cell research he believes may help 90% of cancer sufferers worldwide. Davide Ruggero of the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) has led a team which found that a cellular defect in the production of protein can lead to cancer. Ruggero's team, whose work earned the cover of the current edition of the Cancer Cell journal, also found that a new generation of drugs offers promise in treating the defect. The research focused on a multi-protein unit called mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin), which controls cell survival and proliferation.

When it is "hyperactivated," the study found, cells start to "proliferate without limit and simultaneously become immortal," leading to tumour formation. Ruggero told Ansa that mTOR alteration was "found in 90% of tumours" and so experimental drugs could target it to treat most cancer cases. According to the study, the discovery could affect treatment of lymphoma, prostate cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, brain cancer and multiple myeloma. A new drug called PP242 could become "a potent cancer treatment," the authors said. "We are extremely excited about our findings and the potential of targeting aberrant protein synthesis and mTOR in cancer as we should be able to block cancer's main source of growth," Ruggero said.