Northumbria scientists working to halt breast cancer spread

11/21/2011 7:35 AM EST

Press release
For immediate release: 21.11.11

Scientists at Northumbria University are working towards understanding how breast cancer spreads, thanks to a research grant worth almost £20,000 from Breast Cancer Campaign.

Currently when cancer spreads from the breast to other parts of the body it can be treated but not cured. However, researchers have discovered that breast cancer cells which spread do not produce a protein called maspin.

Dr Rosemary Bass, who works in Northumbria’s School of Life Sciences, aims to understand this more fully. “I believe that maspin usually prevents breast cells undergoing a process called EMT during which their makeup changes and they become able to invade other tissues and evade destruction by the body; key steps in becoming cancerous and spreading”, she said.

She continued: “In the laboratory we will collect and analyse molecules made by breast cancer cells which do produce maspin, and those that do not. This will allow us to identify which of the key molecules involved in EMT fails to be produced when maspin is present. We can then confirm what effect each of these molecules has on breast cancer cells’ ability to move and spread into other tissues.”

Dr Lisa Wilde, Director of Research, Breast Cancer Campaign said, “Too many people still die from breast cancer, mainly as a result of it spreading to other parts of the body. Dr Bass’ innovative project will provide vital clues about the maspin molecule that could help the development of new drugs to stop the disease in its tracks.”

Ends

Notes to editors
• The Breast Cancer Campaign Tissue Bank, the UK’s first ever national breast cancer tissue bank is a unique collaboration with four leading research institutions to create a vital resource of breast cancer tissue for researchers across the UK and Ireland. Visit breastcancertissuebank.org
• Breast Cancer Campaign aims to beat breast cancer by funding innovative world-class research to understand how breast cancer develops, leading to improved diagnosis, treatment, prevention and cure
• The charity currently funds 101 projects worth over £16.5 million in 31 locations across the UK and Ireland
• Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK and accounts for nearly one in three of all cancers in women
• In the UK, around 48,000 new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed each year - that’s 130 a day
• Visit breastcancercampaign.org or follow us at twitter.com/bccampaign