I’ll do some updates on breast cancer research next - there is lot of research out there, and with being so behind it will take a few postings to get caught up.

Treatment and Survival

According to the Journal of the National Cancer Institute the survival of women with early breast cancer is increased when chemotherapy is used along with tamoxifen although preventing the ovaries from releasing estrogen does not help.

A study in International Journal of Sports Medicine suggests that women who survived breast cancer and participated in an supervised cardiovascular and strength training program improved their cardiorespiratory fitness and strength and muscle function. All but the increases in cardiorespiratory fitness were retained another 8 weeks after the initial 8 week program concluded.

New Research

Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) is a protein that is involved in proliferation and differentiation of cells. Radiation and chemotherapy treatments can increase circulating levels of TGF-beta as well as circulating cancer cells in mice. Research in a mouse model of breast cancer that was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation shows that blocking TGF-beta could prevent metastases of a tumor. The researchers blocked TGF-beta with antibodies directed against it resulting in the prevention of tumor metastases. There are currently some early stage clinical trials involving TGF-beta inhibitors being added to the treatment regimen. Read more: Treatment-induced growth factor causes cancer progression

Prevention

Eating a lot of red and processed meats may increase the chances of women developing breast cancer according to some researchers in Great Britain. In this study the diets of over 35,000 women between 35 and 69 were analyzed and it was found that the postmenopausal women who ate the most red meat were 56% more likely to develop breast cancer and those who ate the most processed meat had a 64% increase. Why this is the case is not known but it may involve the saturated fat in meat or the heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons produced in grilled meat. This research was published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Angiogenesis is the process of new blood vessel development which can lead to the increase in growth of tumors by bringing them more nutrients. A protein called VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) is involved in this process. It has long been known that drinking alcohol by women increases their risk for breast cancer. A recent study by Dr. Jian-Wei Gu from the University of Mississippi Medical Center in mice showed that alcohol increased breast tumor size as well as increased blood vessel growth near the tumor. They also found evidence of an increase in VEGF levels.

That’s all for now! More breast cancer news coming soon.