Our bodies are home to microbes that far outnumber our own cells. The bacteria, fungi and viruses that live inside us are collectively called our microbiome, and they play an important role in our health. But scientists also think that the bacteria in our guts might help some cancers develop and change how these cancers respond to treatment.

0:01 Cells in the human body
0:14 The microbiome
0:32 What to microbes do for our gut?
0:48 Inflammation from our gut
1:00 How bowel cancers can start

Researchers around the world, including those now funded by Cancer Research UK’s Grand Challenge are trying to find out more and look for ways to turn these bacteria in to new ways to treat cancer.

You can find out more about the latest Cancer Research UK Grand Challenge teams on our blog: https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/2019/03/21/could-the-bacteria-in-our-gut-help-treat-cancer