Scientists stated that general therapy for various forms of cancer can be formed by forcing tumors to age.

Scientists further stated that experiments in laboratory showed evidence that switching off a gene called Skp2 triggered ageing, or senescence in cancer cells.

It has been observed that normal cells lose the ability to divide and grow as they age. Cancer cells have the ability to divide indefinitely as they are ever ‘youthful’.

The new discovery would help scientists open up the possibility of tackling cancer by causing tumor cells to age or go in a ‘sleep mode’.

Scientists conducted tests on mice in laboratories and these tests were conducted on animals that had faulty biological pathways which normally trigger cancer.

Study leader Dr Hui-Kuan Lin, from the University of Texas at Houston, said, "We discovered that Skp2 actually exhibits oncogenic (cancer causing) activity, which is required for cancer development in multiple tumour models."