Prof. Emma Allen-Vercoe was featured in Korea JoongAng Daily on Dec. 30 talking about a certain bacterium and its role in colon cancer.
The story focused on a new study in the journal Science that said Fusobacterium nucleatum is found in up to half of all colon tumours and travels with the cancer as it spreads. The study also showed that an antibiotic that kills this organism slows the growth of cancer cells in mice.
Allen-Vercoe, a professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at U of G, told Korea JoonAng Daily that the problem with this information is that antibiotics might kill other bacteria that could slow the progression of colon cancer. She studies normal human gut microbiota, both in disease and in health.