Breast cancer cells become invasive by changing their identity
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified a protein that determines the identity and invasive properties of breast cancer cells. The finding could lead to the development of new therapeutic and diagnostic strategies to target breast cancer invasion and metastasis. The study is published in the scientific journal Cancer Research.
Cancer cell invasion of the surrounding tissue is the first step in metastasis, the major cause of death in cancer. Our knowledge of how cancer cells acquire invasive and metastatic properties is incomplete and, consequently, there is a lack of treatment for cancer patients with metastatic disease. The current study sheds new light on this area.
“In recent years, it has become evident that a change in a cancer cell’s identity may contribute to its invasive and metastatic behaviour,” says Jonas Fuxe, Associate Professor at the Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology at Karolinska Institutet, who led the study.