Protein implicated in many cancers

Receptor for hormone may be good drug target

A protein involved in hormone signaling is also produced by blood vessel cells in tumors, a new study finds. The protein showed up in 11 kinds of tumors examined by a French-U.S. research team but was notably absent in most healthy tissues.

The discovery suggests that the protein helps cancer gain a foothold by recruiting blood vessels to nourish the tumor, researchers report in the Oct.