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Fulvestrant-Chemo Combo targeted for ER
Positive Breast Cancer
Newswise — Researchers from The Cancer
Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) converged on
Denver for the 100th Annual Meeting of the
American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
to share their findings on a combined
treatment targeting breast cancer that is
stimulated by the hormone estrogen (estrogen
receptive positive).
They joined other top investigators from
around the globe for the event, which is
highlighting interdisciplinary approaches to
cancer research.
CINJ is a Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert
Wood Johnson Medical School.
Among the abstracts presented was one
focusing on how the FDA-approved therapy
fulvestrant can influence the effects of
chemotherapy drugs on breast cancer cells.
Fulvestrant is commonly used in
postmenopausal women to treat estrogen
receptive positive breast cancer that has
spread to other parts of the body.
Breast cancers that respond to female
hormones, such as estrogen, generate
specific proteins that help tumor cells
survive and grow.
One such protein, HDM2, is known to be
present in higher levels in many cancers
including breast.
These
higher protein levels are strongly
correlated with the presence of the estrogen
receptor on breast cancer cells, which can
affect how well chemotherapy works.
Targeting the receptor is a common treatment
for breast cancer.
Lead author Adriana V. Jager, PhD, a
postdoctoral fellow at CINJ, and her
colleagues focused on adding fulvestrant to
the traditional chemotherapy agents
doxorubicin, etoposide and paclitaxel, as
fulvestrant is known to degrade the estrogen
receptor and result in less stimulation of
tumor cell growth.
They found that in two estrogen receptor
positive breast cancer cell lines,
fulvestrant decreased HDM2 levels and
enhanced the sensitivity of these cells to
chemotherapy.
This enhancement was better than either
fulvestrant or chemotherapy alone.
According to the American Cancer Society,
183,000 cases of breast cancer were
diagnosed nationwide last year, with 6,300
new cases in New Jersey alone.
With
such statistics, the team is hopeful that
this laboratory-based research can be
expanded to a clinical trial with patients
in order to further explore improved
outcomes.
The author team also includes William N.
Hait, MD, PhD, Johnson and Johnson/Centocor;
Deborah Toppmeyer, MD, CINJ; Bruce G. Haffty,
MD, CINJ; Kim Hirshfield, MD, PhD, CINJ; and
Jin-Ming Yang, PhD, Penn State.
The work represented by CINJ members is
among the 6,000 abstracts being presented at
the gathering, which is featuring more than
17,000 researchers, healthcare
professionals, and patient advocates.
The goal of the annual AACR event is to
provide a forum in which the latest in
cutting-edge laboratory, clinical and
translational research can be shared.
About The Cancer
Institute of New Jersey
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (www.cinj.org)
is the state’s first and only National
Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive
Cancer Center, and is dedicated to improving
the prevention, detection, treatment and
care of patients with cancer. CINJ’s
physician-scientists engage in translational
research, transforming their laboratory
discoveries into clinical practice, quite
literally bringing research to life.
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey is a
center of excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood
Johnson Medical School.
To support CINJ, please call the Cancer
Institute of New Jersey Foundation at
1-888-333-CINJ.
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey Network
is comprised of hospitals throughout the
state and provides a mechanism to rapidly
disseminate important discoveries into the
community. Flagship Hospital: Robert Wood
Johnson University Hospital. Major Clinical
Research Affiliate Hospitals: Carol G. Simon
Cancer Center at Morristown Memorial
Hospital, Carol G. Simon Cancer Center at
Overlook Hospital, Jersey Shore University
Medical Center. Affiliate Hospitals:
Bayshore Community Hospital, CentraState
Healthcare System, Cooper University
Hospital*, JFK Medical Center, Raritan Bay
Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson
University Hospital at Hamilton (CINJ at
Hamilton), Saint Peter’s University
Hospital, Somerset Medical Center, Southern
Ocean County Hospital, The University
Hospital/UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School*,
and University Medical Center at Princeton.
*Academic Affiliate
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