Molecule find may lead to personalised treatment

SCOTTISH scientists have discovered a molecule in breast cancer cells that might help dramatically improve the treatment of patients.

Researchers at Aberdeen University said the molecule could help to identify if a patient should undergo chemotherapy and, if so, which drug treatment will be most effective.

The breakthrough might lead to higher survival rates through more individualised treatment of the disease, which affects one in nine women in the UK.

The researchers have shown that the molecule found in breast cancer cells may actually protect these cells from being killed off in treatment.

Women found to have this molecule - called serpin B3 - could be treated with a more aggressive form of chemotherapy which could increase their chances of survival.

If confirmed, it is hoped that the findings could be used in clinical practice within two years.

Professor Steve Heys, cancer research programme leader at the University of Aberdeen said: "Over 45,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.

"The groundbreaking research being conducted into understanding the disease to personalise treatments, along with early diagnosis, is leading to increased survival rates.

"Our discovery opens up the possibility for much more targeted and tailor-made treatment of breast cancer patients in the future by giving us the potential to predict if a patient needs chemotherapy, and understanding which type of drug treatment they will best respond to.

"We will now repeat the study on a larger series of patients to confirm our findings before commencing a clinical trial where the presence of the molecule in a patient's breast cancer will be used to determine their treatment protocol."