The Sunday Express has run a front page story stating that scientists have made a major breakthrough in cancer treatment “after cracking the ‘code’ behind the disease.” Sadly the story is actually only based on an idea rather than on concrete scientific evidence.

The story comes from a paper in the Journal of Translational Medicine written by Professor Michael Quinn and his team in Melbourne, Australia, back in November 2009. The paper focuses on a molecule called C-reactive protein (CRP), produced by liver and fat cells.

Importantly, the paper doesn’t detail the results of new scientific experiments,although the authors do discuss some preliminary data. Instead, it is an overview of previously published research.