New research may deliver novel treatments for invasive breast cancer

New research may deliver novel treatments for invasive breast cancer

breast cancer

New research from the University of South Australia has shed vital information about the mechanism of progression of breast cancers from benign to aggressive form.

The study, led by Senior Research Fellow Dr Marina Kochetkova and Adelaide University’s Deputy Head for Molecular & Biomedical Science Professor Shaun McColl, found a direct link between aggressive breast cancer cells and the dual CXCR4-CCR7 chemokine receptors (proteins).

The research, funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council, shows a connection between the number of these receptors and the severity of the cancer, marking the first time in history this protein interaction has been observed in both animal and human cells.

Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer in females, yet despite decades of medical research, a cure remains out of reach.

One of the study’s researchers, Valentina Poltavets, says blocking the interaction between CXCR4-CCR7 proteins could deliver novel treatments for invasive breast cancer.

“Globally, breast cancer affects more 2.3 million women each year, with aggressive breast cancer accounting for more than 40 percent of all cancer-related deaths in women,” Poltavets says.

“There is no current cure for metastatic tumours, which is why new therapies that can target spread of breast cancer to another organs in the body are so urgently needed.”

“On their own, CXCR4 and CCR7 proteins are found in many cell types including breast cancer cells. But we saw that in more invasive and metastatic breast cancer cells, they are bound to each other to deliver specific signals that make these cells grow and move quickly”.


Poltavets, who completed her PhD on the growth and spread of breast cancers, says that despite growing research leading to improved breast cancer survival rates, further work is required to understand hard-to-treat breast cancers.

“There’s no doubt that research is advancing our knowledge in breast cancer,” she said. “Step by step, we’re determined to find a cure for this devastating disease.”

As part of the study, the research team from the University of South Australia also created a system that forced the CXCR4 and CCR7 proteins to interact on the cell surfaces of non-invasive breast cancer cells, showing how they will make the cancer cells more aggressive and invasive.

During the last two years of the pandemic, 98 percent of breast screens in Australia have been cancelled or delayed, risking the lives of thousands of women. 

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