Damaged Progenitors as Targets for Breast Cancer Prevention
Abstract
Making a major impact on the incidence and lethality of breast cancer will require more effective approaches for breast cancer risk assessment and prevention. These goals will not be met without a detailed understanding of the earliest tissue changes that ultimately drive the process of breast cancer development. Through the support of our original Breakthrough proposal we carried out molecular analysis of tissues from breast cancer-predisposed BRCA1/2 genetic carriers. This study revealed the striking presence of breast cells that had already suffered substantial DNA damage, even when the tissue looked microscopically normal. We therefore hypothesize 1) that discovering markers defining this cell population will propel the development of new tissue-based predictors of breast cancer risk; and 2) that this damaged subpopulation is likely to have specific therapeutic vulnerabilities that could be exploited to eliminate these cells. Accordingly, our objectives are to unravel the mechanisms that give rise to the damaged cells and to reveal specific methods for eliminating them, thereby laying the groundwork for clinical trials of novel breast cancer prevention approaches.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2020
- Accession Number
- AD1121745
Entities
People
- Leif W. Ellison