What is anti-angiogenesis and how does it apply to cancer treatment?
Angiogenesis literally means the birth of new blood vessels. (In Greek, “angio” means blood vessel and “genesis” means birth or beginning). Under controlled physiologic conditions it is a normal and essential process. For example, angiogenesis is a necessary part of fetal development, wound healing, and recovery from a heart attack. However, during the process of cancer growth and spread, angiogenesis allows the tumor to make its own blood supply in order to obtain the nutrients and oxygen it needs for survival. The result is a web of vessels that allows the tumor to grow even more and spread (metastasize) to other far away organs. What is VEGF? Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) is a protein that is secreted by the tumor and acts on the VEGF receptors found on the endothelial cells. Blood vessels are lined with endothelial cells. For the most part, these cells serve to maintain the integrity of the blood vessels. However, various hormones and proteins can direct these cells. Ca
