‘Common, overlooked protein’ could make breast cancer treatment radically more effective

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A new study finds that treating breast cancer could be radically more effective if it targeted a protein found in nearly all human cells.

A study by Breast Cancer Now marks the first time researchers have recognized that the use of RAC1B, a variant of the RAC1 protein, has the potential to enhance breast cancer treatment.

The results, published in the scientific journal Oncogene on Thursday, show scientists transplanting breast cancer cells into mice and discovering that cancer cells without RAC1B do not have observable tumors after 100 days.

The study, which also analyzed clinical data, found that patients with breast cancer treated with doxorubicin chemotherapy had worse outcomes if their tumors had higher amounts of RAC1B.

“It’s exciting that a variant of a common, previously overlooked protein could be the key to changing the way we treat breast cancer,” said Dr Simon Vincent, of Breast Cancer Now.

He added: “Discoveries like this in the early stages can help provide the building blocks for future breakthroughs, leading to new and effective treatments for the 55,000 women and 370 men diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.”

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in the UK, and the disease claims the lives of around 11,500 women each year.

Dr Ahmet Okkar, a Breast Cancer Research Fellow now at the University of Manchester, said: “Developing cancer stem cell therapies to target tumors at their roots has been a research goal for more than 20 years, but so far has proven elusive.

“For the first time, our research has shown that without RAC1B, breast cancer stem cells cannot form tumors and become more susceptible to chemotherapy, making the treatment more effective.

“RAC1B-positive is not needed for healthy cells, so targeting RAC1B with new cancer therapies is unlikely to have severe side effects.”

He said they hope additional research will help “translate these findings into targeted therapies for breast cancer patients.”

Breast cancer now calls for women to have their breasts checked for cancer at least every six weeks because early diagnosis can prevent women from dying of the disease. The charity says those who need help can speak to their expert nurses by calling their free helpline on 0808 800 6000.

One in seven women in Britain will develop breast cancer at some point in their lives – with one woman diagnosed every 10 minutes.

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