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02-16-2009, 03:46 PM
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#1
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Webmaster
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Home of the "Flying Tomato"
Carlsbad, CA
Posts: 2,036
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Study Finds HER2 Breast Cancer Invades Organs Due To fatal Chemical Attraction
HOUSTON - Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have solved the mystery of why an aggressive form of HER2-positive breast cancer travels readily to a few key organs - lungs, liver and bone -where it then establishes new tumors. They say this finding may lead to strategies to block that deadly spread.
The study, published in the November issue of Cancer Cell, describes a lethal attraction between signals found on HER2-positive breast cancer cells and those on the surface of the organs -a magnetism that explains why this form of breast cancer, which affects up to 30 percent of patients, can be so invasive. The vast majority of women who die from HER2-positive breast cancer had developed secondary tumors in their lung, liver and bones.
"It has always been a puzzle as to why, when HER2-positive cancer cells circulate throughout the body looking for a new home, they preferentially travel to these organs," says the study's lead author, Mien-Chie Hung, Ph.D., a professor and chair of the Department of Molecular & Cellular Oncology. "We now have explained it biochemically, and hope that this leads to strategies that prevent such metastasis."
Their discovery focuses on the relationship between HER2 and chemokine receptor proteins on breast cancer cells. Chemokines are a large family of proteins primarily known to speed inflammatory responses by drawing them to circulating white blood cells that have a corresponding chemokine receptor. Researchers have found that some diseases, including HIV and cancer, use this same chemical attraction to invade the body.
Although scientists already had discovered that the chemokine receptor CXCR4 was involved in the movement of certain forms of breast cancer to target organs, they did not know how CXCR4 did that for HER2-postive breast cancer until now.
The M. D. Anderson team specifically found breast cancer that overexpress HER2 proteins also ramp up production
Regards
Joe
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02-16-2009, 08:59 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,477
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Thanks for posting.
karen
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02-17-2009, 01:02 AM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 3,519
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Wow. Hurry!
Thanks, Joe.
__________________
Brenda
NOV 2012 - 9 yr anniversary
JULY 2012 - 7 yr anniversary stage IV (of 50...)
Nov'03~ dX stage 2B
Dec'03~ Rt side mastectomy, Her2+, ER/PR+, 10 nodes out, one node positive
Jan'04~ Taxotere/Adria/Cytoxan x 6, NED, no Rads, Tamox. 1 year, Arimadex 3 mo., NED 14 mo.
Sept'05~ micro mets lungs/chest nodes/underarm node, Switched to Aromasin, T/C/H x 7, NED 6 months - Herceptin only
Aug'06~ micro mets chest nodes, & bone spot @ C3 neck, Added Taxol to Herceptin
Feb'07~ Genetic testing, BRCA 1&2 neg
Apr'07~ MRI - two 9mm brain mets & 5 punctates, new left chest met, & small increase of bone spot C3 neck, Stopped Aromasin
May'07~ Started Tykerb/Xeloda, no WBR for now
June'07~ MRI - stable brain mets, no new mets, 9mm spots less enhanced, CA15.3 down 45.5 to 9.3 in 10 wks, Ty/Xel working magic!
Aug'07~ MRI - brain mets shrunk half, NO NEW BRAIN METS!!, TMs stable @ 9.2
Oct'07~ PET/CT & MRI show NED
Apr'08~ scans still show NED in the head, small bone spot on right iliac crest (rear pelvic bone)
Sept'08~ MRI shows activity in brain mets, completed 5 fractions/5 consecutive days of IMRT to zap the pesky buggers
Oct'08~ dropped Xeloda, switched to tri-weekly Herceptin in combo with Tykerb, extend to tri-monthly Zometa infusion
Dec'08~ Brain MRI- 4 spots reduced to punctate size, large spot shrunk by 3mm, CT of torso clear/pelvis spot stable
June'09~ new 3-4mm left cerrebellar spot zapped with IMRT targeted rads
Sept'09~ new 6mm & 1 cm spots in pituitary/optic chiasm area. Rx= 25 days of 3D conformal fractionated targeted IMRT to the tumors.
Oct'09~ 25 days of low dose 3D conformal fractionated targeted IMRT to the bone mets spot on rt. iliac crest that have been watching for 2 years. Added daily Aromasin back into treatment regimen.
Apr'10~ Brain MRI clear! But, see new small spot on adrenal gland. Change from Aromasin back to Tamoxifen.
June'10~ Tumor markers (CA15.3) dropped from 37 to 23 after one month on Tamoxifen. Continue to monitor adrenal gland spot. Remain on Tykerb/Herceptin/Tamoxifen.
Nov'10~ Radiate positive mediastinal node that was pressing on recurrent laryngeal nerve, causing paralyzed larynx and a funny voice.
Jan'11~ MRI shows possible activity or perhaps just scar tissue/necrotic increase on 3 previously treated brain spots and a pituitary spot. 5 days of IMRT on 4 spots.
Feb'11~ Enrolled in T-DM1 EAP in Denver, first treatment March 25, 2011.
Mar'11~ Finally started T-DM1 EAP in Denver at Rocky Mountain Cancer Center/Rose on Mar. 25... hallelujah.
"I would rather be anecdotally alive than statistically dead."
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02-17-2009, 10:49 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: I live in Christmas, MI - located on the shores of Lake Superior.
Posts: 606
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Thanks for the posting!
__________________
Barb
10/03 Radical Mastectomy 3 cm tumor - 1/17 Nodes Stage II B, Her 2 +++ ER-/PR- 11/03 4 AC 4 Taxol 12/05 Stage IV - Lung met , Bone mets - Carbo, Taxotere, Herceptin 9/06 - 2 cm brain tumor 10/06 - Tumor removal surgery - Herceptin Halted 12/06 gamma knife tumor base.1/07 Navelbine/Herceptin 4/07 Rads to R femur 5/07 Stereotactic - new 2 cm brain tumor 4/07 Start Xeloda 5/07 Tykerb added 7/07 Brain MRI clean 10/07 .055 cm brain met found. 12/07 Stereotactic -1 cm brain tumor Start Tykerb 11/07 Abraxane/Herceptin 5/08 Cisplatin, Gemcitabine/Herceptin 6/08 Stereotactic to 1cm 9/08 Stereotactic repeat (growth). 11/08 Pet Scan Good but new tiny met on L lung/dead Brain surgery (no cancer cells found/scar tissue) 1/09 Chemo restarted 2/09 Pet Scan Bad - R larger very active/active L active lymph nodes both sides of chest MRI- mets slight increase 2/09 Start Doxil/Tykerb Treatment
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02-18-2009, 07:51 AM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 3,380
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Joe, this is fascintating, thanks for posting. I went looking for the abstract and found it here: http://www.cell.com/cancer-cell/abst...108(04)00301-0
Please note that this abstract is from November 2004. Wonder what has been happening with the research since then?
Hopeful
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