Blocking a Protein Breaks the Backbone of Triple-Negative Breast Cancers

by Kathy Jones on March 20, 2012 at 8:31 PM

A new study says that breast tumors can regress when an abundant growth-promoting protein is blocked.

The study is published on March 19th in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

Breast Cancer - Prevention and Management with Lifestyle Changes

Lifestyle choices may or may not cause breast cancer but healthy lifestyle changes can open up avenues beyond breast cancer. Good habits will allow one to fight breast cancer and to live with dignity.

Triple-negative breast tumors lack all of the known growth receptors that serve as treatment targets in other types of breast cancer, making this the most clinically challenging subtype of the disease. Patients with these tumors tend to relapse earlier and have shorter disease-free survival.

Andrei Goga and colleagues now show that triple-negative breast tumors express elevated levels of the growth-driving protein called MYC. MYC activity was required for the growth of these aggressive tumors, and blocking a MYC-cooperating protein, CDK, caused triple-negative tumors to shrink in mice.

Together, these results identify a potential new target for triple-negative tumor treatment.

Source: Eurekalert

Breast Cancer during Pregnancy

Management of breast cancer during pregnancy or pregnancy associated breast cancer requires special consideration to avoid harm to the fetus.

<< Tests for Sensitivity, Allergy or Intolerance to Food

Pancreas Cancer Treatment Challenges Addressed by Scientist... >>

Breast Lumps in Women - Symptom Evaluation

Most breast lumps are caused by hormonal changes in a woman and may not be cancerous. Keeping the threat of breast cancer in mind every breast lump should be medically evaluated.