American scientists have discovered a new organ in the human body, which could help better understand how cancers metastasize.
The potentially eightieth organ in the human body is called ‘interstitium’.
It is a fluid-filled space that exists throughout the body. It has been shown that layers of dense connective tissue are actually arrays of compartments filled with fluid.
The compartments are located beneath the skin, surrounding arteries, muscles, the digestive and urinary tracts, forming a network of solid and elastic proteins.
Until now, the interstitium has gone unnoticed, although it is one of the largest potential organs in the human organism.
Scientists Petros Benias and David Carr-Locke, former employees of the New York medical center Mount Sinai Beth Israel, stumbled upon the discovery while studying a patient’s bile duct for suspected cancer in 2015. They used new technology for detailed examination of living tissue.
Scientists also found that the fluid from the interstitium drains into the lymphatic system, which is associated with the body’s immune response. They hypothesize that interconnected cells facilitate the spread of cancer throughout the body due to the faster passage of fluid.
– A better understanding of the interstitium in the future should contribute to slowing down and preventing the spread of cancer cells. Samples of interstitial fluid could become a powerful diagnostic tool, believes Dr. Theise.
The results of the study by Benias and Carr-Locke were published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.
