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29/11/2005
Grant awarded for breast cancer drug research
A leading Queen's researcher has been granted more than £130,000 to fund research that could one day lead to the development of another breast cancer fighting drug that would have the same affect as Herceptin.
Dr Paul Mullan from the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology is investigating the role of a predictive marker known as TBX2 in breast cancer treatment.
"One of the ways cancer develops is a phenomenon known as gene amplification," Dr Mullan said. "Here the tumour cell makes multiple copies of particular regions of chromosomes which harbour genes important for tumour growth. These cancer causing genes are referred to as oncogenes and in general contribute to uncontrolled cell growth which can form tumours."
There are number of these amplified regions or amplicons in breast cancer. One of the most common amplicons in breast cancer (30%) is the region on chromosome 17 (17q12) which contains the HER2 oncogene. HER2 is the key gene that is responsible for the development of this type of breast cancer and cancer clinicians have specifically targeted this gene using the drug Herceptin.
A region which receives much less attention and is the focus of Dr Mullan's research is chromosome 17 (17q23) which is found in up to 20% of breast cancers.
Dr Mullan explained this region contained another gene which appears to have profound effects on tumour cell growth.
"This oncogene called T-box2 (TBX2) is responsible for switching off other genes and is known to do this in at least two of the major growth control genes which are key in the prevention of cancer. What we know is when TBX2 is amplified it usually means that there is a more aggressive form of breast cancer."
Dr Mullan said his research intended to study the effect of TBX2 in the development of breast cancer and hoped it would one day lead to better treatments. While the work is in its early stages, TBX2 looks to be a promising breast cancer therapeutic target.
(MB/SP)
Dr Paul Mullan from the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology is investigating the role of a predictive marker known as TBX2 in breast cancer treatment.
"One of the ways cancer develops is a phenomenon known as gene amplification," Dr Mullan said. "Here the tumour cell makes multiple copies of particular regions of chromosomes which harbour genes important for tumour growth. These cancer causing genes are referred to as oncogenes and in general contribute to uncontrolled cell growth which can form tumours."
There are number of these amplified regions or amplicons in breast cancer. One of the most common amplicons in breast cancer (30%) is the region on chromosome 17 (17q12) which contains the HER2 oncogene. HER2 is the key gene that is responsible for the development of this type of breast cancer and cancer clinicians have specifically targeted this gene using the drug Herceptin.
A region which receives much less attention and is the focus of Dr Mullan's research is chromosome 17 (17q23) which is found in up to 20% of breast cancers.
Dr Mullan explained this region contained another gene which appears to have profound effects on tumour cell growth.
"This oncogene called T-box2 (TBX2) is responsible for switching off other genes and is known to do this in at least two of the major growth control genes which are key in the prevention of cancer. What we know is when TBX2 is amplified it usually means that there is a more aggressive form of breast cancer."
Dr Mullan said his research intended to study the effect of TBX2 in the development of breast cancer and hoped it would one day lead to better treatments. While the work is in its early stages, TBX2 looks to be a promising breast cancer therapeutic target.
(MB/SP)
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