Have British scientists found the cell that causes the spread of breast cancer?

September 16, 2016

Institute of Cancer Research experts identified a chemical, endosialin
This helps the disease spread through the bloodstream to vital organs
The find paves the way for drugs that could save thousands of lives
Breast cancer is Britain’s most common cancer and one in eight women will be diagnosed with it

Fiona Macrae Science Correspondent For The Daily Mail

Published:
18:00 EST, 15 September 2016

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Updated:
03:13 EST, 16 September 2016

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One of breast cancer’s best-kept secrets has been unlocked by British scientists.

They have discovered how the disease escapes into the bloodstream, allowing its deadly spread to the lungs, liver and other vital organs.

The find paves the way for drugs that could save thousands of lives a year by stopping the cancer in its tracks.

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British scientists have discovered a key secret to the mechanism by which breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body (file photo)

Breast cancer is Britain’s most common cancer and one in eight women will be diagnosed with it in their lifetime.

The initial tumour that appears on a woman’s breast rarely kills but once the disease starts to eat away at other parts of the body it becomes incurable.

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As a result, most of the 11,500 deaths breast cancer each year occur after the disease spreads.

Now, researchers have identified a chemical key to the process.

Called endosialin, it helps the cancer squeeze into the blood vessels. Once inside, the blood ferries the cancer around the body, allowing it to spread its tentacles.

While blood has long been known as an escape route, it wasn’t clear just how the disease made its way into the bloodstream.

Experts at the Institute of Cancer Research in London identified a chemical, endosialin, which helps the disease spread through the bloodstream to the lungs, liver and other vital organs

Tests on cells and in mice confirmed the importance of the chemical.

And a study on 334 women with breast cancer found that the disease was more likely to spread in those who made more of the compound.

In the future, women with high levels of endosialin could be give more intensive treatment, in a bid to keep the disease at bay.

The discovery, reported in the journal Cancer Research, also paves the way for anti-endosialin drugs that could contain the disease.

The chemical is made by cells called pericytes – non-cancerous cells that wrap around the blood vessels.

Further research will look at why some women make more of the chemical than others.

Study co-leader Professor Clare Isacke, of the The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said: ‘Our study sheds valuable light on the role of pericytes – a type of cell that wraps around blood vessels – in helping breast cancer cells escape into the bloodstream and spread round the body.

‘We found that a molecule called endosialin, which is produced on the surface of pericytes, plays a key role in aiding the getaway of cancer cells.

‘We believe that endosialin could be a useful marker of how likely a woman’s breast cancer is to spread around the body.

‘And it might even be possible to block cancer spread by targeting this molecule with new drugs – something we plan to explore in future studies.’

Baroness Delyth Morgan, Chief Executive at Breast Cancer Now, which part-funded the work, said: ‘This discovery paves the way for research that could help prevent and contain the spread of breast cancer.

‘We’re hopeful that this fundamental understanding could lead to new ways to identify patients at high risk of their breast cancer spreading, who could be offered more intensive treatment.

‘That endosialin could also eventually be targeted by drugs to prevent and contain secondary breast cancer is a really exciting prospect.

‘Secondary breast cancer, where the disease has spread, is ultimately the reason that around 11,500 women in the UK lose their lives to the disease each year.

‘Uncovering the processes that allow tumours to spread is therefore one of the most crucial questions remaining in breast cancer research.’