A new ChristianaCare study shows cancer stem cells can actually be protected in some cases by radiation treatment, and researchers say this is a particularly important discovery for treating an aggressive form of breast cancer seen more often in the First State.
Jennifer Sims-Mourtada, Ph.D., is director of Translational Breast Cancer Research at ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center. Her research shows the inflammation caused by radiation meant to reduce the size of a tumor can in some cases create a pathway necessary for cancer stem cells to survive.
“Radiation induced inflammation can be both good and bad,” said Sims-Mourtada. “So we know that radiation can actually induce inflammation that activates the immune system to kill tumor cells, but in this case we’re showing that radiation induced inflammation can make certain type of tumor cells survive radiation.”
Sims-Mourtada emphasizes that women should not avoid radiation if their physician recommends that course of treatment. But she also points out the cancer stem cells that can survive radiation are “particularly elusive” in triple-negative breast cancer—a form of cancer more common in Delaware than any other state.
“We also don’t have any good targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer,” she said. “So patients are left with treatment with chemotherapy and radiation. So, in this case, we’re going to be making radiation work much better and hopefully have better outcomes for those patients with triple-negative breast cancer.”
She notes there are inflammation inhibitors currently in clinical trials that could be paired with radiation therapy to reduce the inflammation and ensure cancer stem cells die from the treatment. Her team also identified an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat rheumatoid arthritis that could also be used to inhibit the growth of cancer stem cells and triple-negative breast cancer tumors.
Triple-negative breast cancer grows faster than other forms of breast cancer and makes up 15-20% of all breast cancers, according to ChristianaCare. It’s most common in African American and Latina women under the age of 40, according to the National Cancer Institute.
ChristianaCare is also working to raise public awareness of triple-negative breast cancer by training community instructors to use the acronym BRENDA to promote things like breastfeeding, healthy diet and exercise at community events.
