Scientists have created a protein that is capable of stopping the initial spread of cancer cells.

Cancer cells start in tumor sites in a specific part of the body. They then break away, travel through the blood stream, and aggressively grow in other parts of the body. This spreading is called metastasis.

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Associate professor of bioengineering, Jennifer Cochran, says that most patients that fall prey to cancer do so to metastatic forms of the disease.

While doctors try and use chemotherapy to stop the spread, it has not been wholly effective for all patients, while also producing side effects.

The team from Stanford takes a different approach. Instead of chemo, they intend to stop the proteins Axl and Gas6 from interacting, in effect stopping the spread of cancer.

Axl proteins are bristle-like objects on cancer cells, awaiting signals from Gas6 proteins. When two Gas6 proteins meet the Axl, cancer starts spreading.

Cochran wanted to trick the Gas6 proteins by creating a false Axl protein. This means that the real Axl and Gas6 proteins don't really meet, stopping cancer from spreading.

Professor Amato Giaccia, head of the Radiation Biology Program in Stanford's Cancer Center, worked with Cochran and team by testing the protein out in mice with breast and ovarian cancer.

The mice with breast cancer showed an impressive drop of metastatic nodules - 78 percent fewer than untreated mice.

The group with ovarian cancer on the other hand reduced metastatic nodules by 90 percent.

The research and experiment are promising. However, it is still subject to even more testing while increasing the production of the Axl protein decoy to generate pure material for clinical tests.

However, the Axl protein may eventually become an effective and non-toxic process of fighting metastatic cancer.

TagsCancer, Jennifer Cochran, Axl, Gas6