Overview
- In a peer‑reviewed Cancer Cell study, MD Anderson researchers report that intratumoral bacteria, particularly Fusobacterium nucleatum, can push epithelial cancer cells into a reversible quiescent state.
- Preclinical models showed the microbes lodged between tumor cells and disrupted cell communication, leaving the cancer cells less susceptible to certain chemotherapies.
- Spatial analyses confirmed bacterial enrichment in low‑epithelial, low‑transcription regions in vivo and in a 52‑patient oral and colorectal cancer cohort.
- An independent patient cohort linked higher bacterial loads with lower expression of immune‑detection genes and reduced treatment response.
- The authors caution that lab doses and oxygen levels may not fully reflect human tumors, and they are pursuing microbe‑aware therapies, including engineered tumor‑targeting bacteria.