Scottish scientists make molecule discovery
Could boost breast cancer survival rates
Aberdeen scientists have discovered a molecule in breast cancer cells which could help identify whether a patient should undergo chemotherapy, and if so, which drug treatment will be the most effective.
The scientists believe the discovery could lead to higher breast cancer survival rates through more individualised treatment. The disease affects 1 in 9 women in the UK.
The team from Aberdeen University examined the cases of 250 women with breast cancer who were given chemotherapy before surgery.
The 12-month study identified a molecule called serpin B3, which could be treated with a more aggressive form of chemotherapy and could increase the patients’ chances of survival.
Lead researcher Dr Elaina Collie-Duguid said: ‘We have shown that patients who have the molecule serpin B3 present in their breast cancer cells have a very poor prognosis if treated with the standard anthracycline-based regimens. This may be due to serpin B3 working as a protective barrier for the cancerous cells, preventing them from being killed off by these chemotherapy drugs.’
She added that testing for the presence of serpin B3 could result in patients with this cancer molecule being treated with taxanes, which are the more aggressive of the most effective chemotherapy drugs.
‘Although taxanes have more severe side effects than other chemotherapy drugs, they are more likely to have a higher success rate in killing off the cancer cells in patients found to host this molecule,’ said Collie-Duguid.
Scientists will now repeat the study on a larger group of breast cancer patients.
If the results are confirmed, the findings could be used in clinical practice within two years.
Professor Steve Heys, cancer research programme leader at Aberdeen University, added: ‘Our discovery opens up the possibility for much more targeted and tailor-made treatment of breast cancer patients in the future by giving us the potential to predict if a patient needs chemotherapy, and understanding which type of drug treatment they will best respond to.’
The research was conducted as part of a programme of work funded by local charities, the Moonlight Prowl and Bling Fling, and Aberdeen University.