{description}The majority of cancer deaths occur when cancer cells spread from a localized tumor to other parts of the body during a process called metastasis. Investigations into the mechanisms of metastasis have revealed that a low-oxygen micro-environment - hypoxia - within the tumor can contribute to this lethal process. Dr. Janine Erler and Dr. Amato Giaccia at the Stanford University School of Medicine found that a protein called lysyl oxidase (Lox) is related to high metastasis rates and low-oxygen micro-environments in breast, head and neck cancers. {/description}