Hopeful research

Breast cancer cells can go into a kind of dormant state, only to "wake up" after years and then give rise to relapse. Dormant cancer cells are not susceptible to chemotherapy. Researchers at KU Leuven have discovered how to keep breast cancer cells awake so that they do get destroyed with appropriate treatment.

This discovery is important, but it is not yet applicable in practice. Much additional research is needed first. It is especially hopeful news for triple-negative breast cancer, because treatment options for this form are limited. Triple-negative breast cancer, for example, does not respond to hormone therapy. Many breast cancer patients do respond well to chemotherapy, especially initially, but the cancer often returns. The new study from KU Leuven has discovered why: some cancer cells enter a kind of sleep state, allowing them to escape chemotherapy. By further unraveling the mechanism, researchers can look for ways to wake up the dormant cancer cells so chemotherapy can do its job better. Before this can be implemented, many steps still need to be taken.

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