Light Switch Wakes Sleeping Cancer Cells and Makes Them Vulnerable Again

Scientists at ETH Zurich have developed a groundbreaking light-controlled molecular switch that targets dormant cancer cells, which often evade traditional treatments by entering a stress-induced sleep state. These sleeping tumor cells produce stress hormones and protective receptors that allow them to survive standard therapies. The new technology selectively destroys these survival receptors, effectively 'waking up' the cancer cells and making them vulnerable to treatment again. In laboratory tests using lung cancer cells, this approach showed promise for enhancing cancer therapy effectiveness while reducing damage to healthy tissue, potentially transforming how doctors combat treatment-resistant cancers.