New target identified in the battle against breast cancer
04 Dec 2006 - Scientists have identified a potential new drug target that could give hope to a subclass of breast cancer sufferers.
Lobular breast cancer accounts for 10-15% of all breast cancer cases in the UK. Approximately 30% of all patients with lobular cancer will develop recurrences, despite being managed with the best therapeutic regimens available. To identify new drug targets for this form of breast cancer, scientists from the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre at The Institute performed a detailed analysis of the cancer’s genetics, and found that half of the samples had increased copies of a gene called FGFR1.
Previous studies have shown that too much FGFR1 is associated with a poor prognosis, as well as an increased chance of cancer reoccurrence. Institute scientists demonstrated that when cells with high levels of FGFR1 had the protein removed or blocked, tumour cell growth-rate was reduced. It is hoped that blocking FGFR1 may provide a new way of treating lobular breast cancers.
Dr Jorge Reis-Filho, Team Leader of the Molecular Pathology laboratory from the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre at The Institute, commented: "Breast cancer is a complex disease made up of many subtypes. Currently, most breast cancers are treated similarly but we'd like to be able to tailor treatment for each subtype. To do this, it is important that we find new targets for drug development. The discovery of FGFR1 is the first step on the road to tailoring treatment for women diagnosed with lobular breast cancer."
Find out more about Dr Jorge Reis-Filho's research.
