| abstract |
Tumor metastases are often caused by the elimination of the tumor suppressive effect of DAP-kinase. If the lack of DAP-kinase activity is due to methylation of the DAP-kinase gene, then the tumor suppressive activity of DAP-kinase can be restored by treating with a demethylating agent such as 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine. Thus, tumor cells of a patient are screened to determine whether DAP-kinase protein is produced by the cells and, if not, to determine if the cells contain DAP-kinase genes which are methylated. If the latter case is so, then the patient is treated with a demethylating agent such as 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine. If the cells produce DAP-kinase protein, the patient may be prophylactically treated with a demethylating agent or a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, such as 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine, in order to prevent eventual loss of DAP-kinase by methylation of the gene and therefore prevent eventual metastasis. |