Breast Cancer Stem Cell Discovery

This article in the Telegraph talks about a new stem cell discovery that may help fight breast cancer. New findings from two research teams -- one in Australia and the other in Canada -- have discovered a "mammary gland stem cell". The article explains the possible benefits of the discovery: "Under normal circumstances, the newly identified breast stem cell will produce healthy tissue. But it is believed that an accumulation of genetic errors, perhaps combined with external influences and a family predisposition, could cause the breast stem cell or a 'daughter' cell to produce faulty cells. The errant breast cell can then become a tumour factory." Like all scientific discoveries, more study is needed. The results from these studies are based on studies using mice, and it will take some time to translate the findings to humans.

The finding may also help explain the recurrence of breast cancer in many patients: "Chemotherapy works by targeting cells that are dividing rapidly, which is typical behaviour of cancer cells. But an errant stem-like cell may be more resistant to chemotherapy because it divides more slowly. So while chemotherapy can eliminate the bulk of cancer cells, the tumour factory itself - a breast cancer stem cell - may survive months or years later."

Read the full article here.