This Is What It Looks Like When Cancer Cells Form Tumors

Terrifying new video reveals how tumors develop in real time.

The horrifying process by which cancer cells form a tumor has been captured in a new video.

The video (above), which was recorded by a team of scientists at the University of Iowa and posted to YouTube last week, shows how cancerous breast tissue cells actively capture and pull healthy cells in, allowing tumors to grow.

It takes as little as 5 percent of cancerous cells in the body to form tumors in this way, a fact that was previously unknown, Dr. David Soll, a biology professor at the university who was part of the research team, said in a statement.

"It’s not like things sticking to each other," Soll said. "It’s that these cells go out and actively recruit. It’s complicated stuff, and it’s not passive. No one had a clue that there were specialized cells in this process, and that it’s a small number that pulls all the rest in."

The scientists concluded that their research could lead to a more precise way to not only identify the cells that form tumors, but also to develop new approaches to eliminating them.

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