Doctors, patients can advance breast cancer treatment, prevention
By Dana Benson
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It is undoubtedly very important that for this one month the prevention and treatment of breast cancer – the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer in women – take center stage. The success of the campaign to make people more aware of breast cancer can be seen in the pink ribbons women and even some men wear all month long.
At Baylor College of Medicine, doctors and researchers are doing important work year-round to treat and prevent breast cancer.
Significant research
Some of this significant work includes the development by a BCM scientist of a three dimensional cell culture system to grow and study breast cells. These 3D cell culture systems allow researchers to test their new techniques and drugs in an environment that more closely mimics the way in which cells grow. But growing cultures in this way is expensive.
Steffi Oesterreich, Ph.D., associate professor in the Lester and Sue Smith Breast Center at Baylor College of Medicine, and Benny A. Kaipparettu, Ph.D., a postdoctoral associate in her laboratory, found a solution using chicken egg whites. Their process has garnered attention in other laboratories around the world.
Other recent research by Yi Li, Ph.D., a professor in the breast center, showed that a decrease in stem cells found in young animals that had given birth may prove protective against breast cancer. If the protective mechanism behind a decrease in stem cells can be determined, then it could lead to the development of a pill for young women that could significantly reduce their risk of breast cancer, explained Li, whose research appeared in a recent issue of the journal Stem Cells.
Women as advocates
Research can lead to better treatment – and perhaps one day a cure – but it's also important that women be advocates for their own health. Women should know the risk factors for breast cancer as well as their family history. They should also perform monthly self-breast exams and get clinical exams every year. Women at average risk of breast cancer should have mammograms starting at age 40 and those at higher risk should talk to their doctors about which screening tests are right for them.
Women can also advance research on breast cancer by participating in clinical trials. New therapies can be developed from clinical trials, but progress is slowed because less than 5 percent of cancer patients are enrolled in such studies, said Powel Brown, M.D., Ph.D., director of the cancer prevention program at the Smith Breast Center.
He encourages patients to ask their physician if there are studies available that are appropriate for them. If they do take part, they will not only receive good care, they will also advance the future of breast cancer therapy for everyone.
The Smith Breast Center at the Baylor Clinic offers studies to patients with almost any kind type of breast cancer from metastatic (or spreading) breast cancer to early stage or noninvasive breast cancer. There are even studies for patients who don't have breast cancer but are at an increased risk, noted Brown.
To learn more about the breast cancer studies, visit the Lester and Sue Smith Breast Center Clinical Trials web page.
View additional information on clinical trials at Baylor College of Medicine.
