The fight against breast cancer is an unending one where the disease rears its ugly face perennially tricking patients into believing it is in remission. There have been many cases where the disease has reappeared months and years after treatments. In equal measure, there are many who have been wise enough to check the disease in its early stages and escaped the shackles of breast cancer. Today, however, the world can look towards new hope as new discoveries are being made in the research for a through cure for breast cancer.
The latest new discoveries are a milestone in the fight against the disease taking a huge toll wherein 2018 alone it is expected that at least 266,120 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be detected. However, these three new discoveries will throw ample light on how to manage and prevent the disease.
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A new research has just uncovered a protein that helps the spread of breast cancer. The findings were published in the journal Oncogene and may even lead to new therapies in invasive breast cancer. The main cause of the death from breast cancer is metastasis or the spread from the main tumor to various parts of the body.
The new study led by Dr. Ainhoa Mielgo Department of Cancer Studies at the University of Liverpool, UK and first author Lucy Ireland, Ph.D. sought to achieve “A better understanding of the mechanisms underlying the metastatic spreading of breast cancer is critical to improving treatment and patient outcome.”
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Mielgo and her team researched macrophages, a group of immune cells that assist in the spread of breast cancer. Such cells are found in plenty in a breast cancer environment and they either stop or spread the disease. The study conducted experiments to see how exactly did such cells spread the disease.
The researchers used the help of earlier studies that showed how macrophages displayed increased levels of IGF (insulin growth factors) in various types of cancer.
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IGF hormones stimulate growth in humans with IGF-1 and IGF-2 occurs naturally in the blood. The new study discovered both these hormones existing in breast cancer tumors that helped the disease to spread. It was mostly in macrophages that displayed a high level of the hormones causing the disease to spread to the lungs. When the research team studied breast cancer patients, they found IGF receptors present and active in almost 75% of them. In addition, those with invasive breast cancer displayed an increase of 87% inactivation of IGF 1 receptors.
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The team then used mice for experiments where IGF levels were blocked along with a combination of paclitaxel a chemotherapy drug used for aggressive types of breast cancer. A significant reduction in tumor cells was observed with the combination therapy. This meant that with further research, effective treatment can be formulated to prevent the growth of IGF hormones in tumors to prevent the disease.
As Dr. Mielgo explained, "I am thrilled by our findings, as the combination therapy is more effective than the current treatment in preclinical models of breast cancer."
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In the second latest breast cancer discovery, research has uncovered a certain type of Omega 3 fatty acid having an increased ability to fight breast cancer. Scientists at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada have now revealed that omega 3 fatty acids derived from fish oil may be around 8 times more powerful to halt and prevent the development of aggressive tumors in comparison to omega 3’s from plant sources. This could also explain why the Mediterranean diet has been found to help prevent and decrease the risk of breast cancer.
The study done by Professor David Ma working in the health and Nutritional sciences department of Guelph University was published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.
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According to statistics, around 40,920 women are expected to die of breast cancer in 2018. The most aggressive form of breast cancer is HER2-positive breast cancer where the tumors are known to contain an increased level of HER2 or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 protein that spreads and helps cancer cells to grow.
While earlier research found that omega-3 fatty acids can retard the spread of breast cancer development, Professor Ma tried finding out which omega-3 was the most powerful.
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Fish oil has two types of omega 3-fatty acids: eicosapentaenoic acid or (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). The plant-based omega 3’s are ALA or a-linolenic acid found in soy, canola oil and flaxseed. In the study Professor MA used all three on mice afflicted with breast cancer tumors of the HER2 type.
The team found that mice that were exposed to the fish oil derivative (EPA and DHA) experienced almost 70% reduction in the size of the tumors and 30% decreases in breast tumors. The plant based derivative did not have the same effect.
This also means that making healthy choices where your diet is concerned goes a long way in preventing cancer. Consume more fatty fish like salmon to get the best of omega 3 fatty acids and lean protein. Fish oil is also a rich source of vitamins A and D.
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A new study has made a surprising discovery: Even women within a normal weight range may have an increased risk of invasive breast cancer if they have high body fat levels.
As per the CDC (center for disease control and prevention), among the biggest risk factors of breast cancer was overweight and obesity after menopause. However new evidence from latest studies now proves that it is more body fat rather than bodyweight which increased a risk of the disease.
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Author Neil Iyengar from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, NY presented the research study at the recent American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference.
Titled Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes, the study pointed out body fat as one of the biggest risk factors of breast cancer. Said Doctor Iyengar “It was previously unknown whether individuals who have a normal BMI but increased body fat have an increased risk of developing cancer." He went on to add that the risk of invasive breast cancer increased in postmenopausal women having a normal BMI and high levels of body fat which also meant that “a large proportion of the population has an unrecognized risk of developing cancer."
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Till now the relation of body fat and invasive breast cancer has not been researched because of the difficulty in calculating how much BMUI is made up of fat and how much skin bones and muscles. Researchers used a special technique called dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) that enables specialists to measure different elements of body composition like body fat.
The study over a period of 16 years fo9llowed 3,460 volunteers whose BMI (within normal readings of 18-25) was analyzed and without previous diagnosis of breast cancer. Over the years, those diagnosed with the disease were followed up for invasive breast cancer. They were also assessed for estrogen receptor positivity in reference to various cancers where malignant cell growth could be caused by exposure to estrogen. At the end of the study, 186 women had developed invasive breast cancer among which 146 showed signs of estrogen receptor positivity.
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After analyzing the data the researchers found that women with normal BMI but high body fat possessed almost twice the risk of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer in comparison to those with low levels of body fat in their BMI
The risk was also increased by 35% for every KG of body fat. Dr. Iyengar also noted that physical activity was low in those with body fat which means that PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT EVEN FOR THOSE NOT OBESE OR OVERWEIGHT. There are several specific and accurate exercises for women to burn body fat which can be done either at home or in a gym and should be started today if you think you have body fat.
"We hope that our findings will alert women to the possibility of increased breast cancer risk related to body fat, even if they have a healthy weight," he adds.
Hopefully, these three latest breast cancer discoveries will go a long way in improving the lives of women with the disease and even prevent it.
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