Tumour microbiology
The complex relationship between micro-organisms and cancer is only starting to be appreciated & understood.
Some micro-organisms are known to cause cancer. Examples are Helicobacter pylori, which causes gastric cancer in humans and animals, Hepatitis B&C viruses which can cause liver cancer in a proportion of infected people as well as HPV viruses that can cause cervical cancer
Micro-organisms infect tumours and can kill tumour cells. More recently it has become apparent that many tumours harbour micro-organisms and that cancer cells and micro-organisms can have a synergistic relationship in which they both contribute to each other’s survival and growth.
- Dróżdż M, Makuch S, Cieniuch G, Woźniak M, Ziółkowski P. Obligate and facultative anaerobic bacteria in targeted cancer therapy: Current strategies and clinical applications. Life Sci. 2020 Nov 15;261:118296.
- Sepich-Poore GD, Zitvogel L, Straussman R, Hasty J, Wargo JA, Knight R. The microbiome and human cancer. Science. 2021 Mar 26;371(6536):eabc4552.