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> Cancer's Stem Cell Revolution - Introduction
Even under a microscope, there's no way to distinguish cancer stem cells from other malignant cells just by looking at
them. To identify stem cells, scientists use specialized equipment to detect specific proteins on the cell's surface.
These proteins are not found on regular cancer cells.
To prove that cells with certain protein markers are cancer stem cells, scientists use a special test.
They inject cells from a human tumor into mice that are genetically engineered to lack a cancer-fighting immune
system. If the mouse does not get cancer, scientists know the injected cells were not stem cells, because ordinary
tumor cells will divide a few times and then die. But if the mouse develops a tumor with the same types of cells as
the human tumor, scientists know that the injected cells were true cancer stem cells.
Continue on to page 2 of "Identifying Stem Cells"
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