New Findings May improve treatment of inherted breast cancer

The most common reason for inherited breast cancer is caused by a mutation in suppressor genes, the most common being a mutation in BRCA1. If a patient has inherited a mutation in breast cancer associated gene-1 (BRCA1), there is a fifty to eighty percent risk of the patient developing breast cancer by the age of 70.

Survivin is a inhibitor that prevents apoptosis (cell suicide), and therefore prevents cancel cells from dying and allows the tumor to continue rapid growth. Genetics of Development and Diseases Branch at the National Institutes of Health has held studies led by Dr. Deng to try to find the relation between having a mutation BRCA1 gene and obtaining high levels of survivin.

They have found that the BRCA1 gene is used by our bodies as a tumor suppressor by maintaining high levels of SIRT1 which inhibit Survivin expression, and therefore prevent rapid growth of tumors. Consequently, when BRCA1 is not functioning properly in a patient, Survivin levels increase allowing cells to go through a malignant transformation by overcoming apoptosis.
Reveratrol is the new treatment that combines traditional Japanese and Chinese medecine. In recent studies, it has shown to induce apoptosis while causing very little toxicity. By inducing apoptosis, reveratrol is able to inhibit some types of cancer. It has been shown to increase SIRT1 activity causing levels of Survivin to reduce.

I found this article to be interesting because breast cancer affects a very large number of women every year, 8% of them being inherited. This is a huge step forward in peventing one of the many types of breast cancer, and will hopefully be able to save many lives.

Erica Williams
VTPP 434-502

Source:http://www.physorg.com/news142773860.html