Metastasis-promoting protein identified; could provide a prognostic test or target for breast cancer
Monday, February 23, 2009 - 17:35
in Health & Medicine
Tumors that are about to progress and metastasize go through a process also seen in normal embryonic development, known as the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). Tumor cells revert to a less-differentiated state, stop adhering to each another and become more mobile and prone to invade and proliferate. Now, researchers at Children's Hospital Boston show, for the first time, that a small protein called lipocalin 2 triggers the EMT in human breast cancer - and that the same protein, when measured in tissues and urine, can predict a cancer's invasiveness. Their findings were published online February 23 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.