Funded with support from the Butler Family Gift Fund
Triple-negative breast cancer, or TNBC, makes up 10 to 20 percent of all breast cancers. It often returns within five years and becomes very hard to treat once it spreads through the body. Treatments that destroy spreading cancer cells before they form new tumors could greatly improve survival. Most TNBC tumors contain cells called basal-like tumor cells. These cells look similar to normal cells in breast tissue, and research shows they play a major role in helping cancer spread. Targeting these cells could help stop the cancer from coming back, but researchers have not yet found the right weak points to attack.Through this grant, we plan to explore an exciting idea. We believe TNBC cells can be changed into cells that resemble epidermis, the normal outer layer of skin. This matters because the body sheds skin cells every day and has strong systems to keep them from growing out of control. Early findings show that when breast cancer cells are shifted into this skin-like state, they lose their ability to grow and spread. By learning how and why this change happens, we can work toward finding drugs that trigger this shift. These shape-shifting drugs could one day become new treatments for breast cancer patients.
