Call for an instant quote 0345 90 80 161
Open Mon to Fri 09:00 - 17:30 | Sat 09:00 - 16:00 (GMT)
30 November 2015 08:09
Breast cancer kills around 11,500 people in the UK each year
A combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy could provide the key to treating breast cancer patients who have become resistant to existing drugs, new research suggests.
An international team of scientists tested the dual therapy on mice and say their results were "striking".
Experts at the Breast Cancer Care charity say they hope the study will be followed by further clinical trials and pave the way for the development of better treatments.
Researchers say the fact that the mice stayed free of cancer even after being given fresh tumours suggests the combined treatment provided them with ongoing immune protection.
Breast cancer has not previously been known to respond well to immunotherapy but pairing it with targeted chemotherapy produced some startling results, the research team says.
The therapy prevented tumours in the mice from being able to protect themselves from the immune system, enabling them to be attacked by cancer-fighting immune cells.
The type of cancer used by the team is one known as Her2 positive. It affects up to a fifth of all women with breast cancer and in the majority of cases results in patients becoming resistant to the drug Herceptin and other treatments.
But research leader Dr Philipp Muller, of Switzerland's University of Basel, says the technique made the tumours highly vulnerable to antibody-based immunotherapy.
It saw the mice given a chemotherapy drug and a variety of antibodies, including some which stopped the cancers shielding themselves from the animals' immune systems.
Breast cancer should not mean an end to life's luxuries, and holidaymakers can cover themselves with the help of cancer travel insurance policies.
Breast Cancer Care's Jackie Harris describes the research as interesting and a welcome forward step.
The clinical nurse specialist says the results of the early study open up the possibility of breast cancer patients who have become resistant to current drugs being treated in an alternative way in the future.
She adds that while Her2 positive breast cancer is hard to treat, research will provide the key to more effective treatments being developed.
The new study is published in the Science Translational Medicine journal.
20 July 2017
A report has criticised survival rates in the UK for a number of cancers.
[more...]
19 July 2017
A leading expert in health inequality has called for 'urgent investigation' after increases in life expectancy stalled in recent years.
18 July 2017
People following a so-called Mediterranean diet rich in oily fish, fresh vegetables and nuts have a lower risk of suffering dementia.
15 July 2017
If you often put in extra hours at work you may want to think again.
14 July 2017
Researchers have highlighted a link between tall men and aggressive cases of prostate cancer.
13 July 2017
More than three-quarters of long-term carers feel stressed by their role, according to a new report.
12 July 2017
Want to live a longer life? Try drinking more coffee - so say researchers.
11 July 2017
More people are diagnosed with cancer than those who are getting married each year, new research suggests.
08 July 2017
Heading off on holiday this summer? Don't forget your sunnies.
07 July 2017
Startling new figures have underlined the dementia challenge facing the country.
06 July 2017
When it comes to embarking on a new life or buying a holiday home in the sun, Spain is king among Brits.
05 July 2017
Scientists have made a major breakthrough in cancer treatment.