The federal government is expected to overhaul Canada’s cancer screening task force following criticism that its recommendations are outdated and lacked expert input. Breast cancer screening is a key focus, with growing pressure to lower the starting age to 40.
McGill University experts are available to speak to the debate, including:
A new study demonstrates how universal genetic testing for breast cancer can ensure no patient is missed for advanced therapies.
A team of researchers at the RI-MUHC found two cellular pathways involved in TNBC tumour development and a promising targeted combination therapy
Source: RI-MUHC
Using a new technique, a team of McGill University researchers has found tiny and previously undetectable ‘hot spots’ of extremely high stiffness inside aggressive and invasive breast cancer tumours. Their findings suggest, for the first time, that only very tiny regions of a tumor need to stiffen for metastasis to take place. Though still in its infancy, the researchers believe that their technique may prove useful in detecting and mapping the progression of aggressive cancers.
Marc Miller, Member of Parliament (Ville-Marie–Le Sud-Ouest–Île-des-Sœurs, Quebec) and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, on behalf of the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, announced today at McGill an investment of up to $6 million for a scientific task force of top researchers to develop new and improved approaches to cancer treatment and care. The funding will be distributed over four years to the new pan-Canadian program, the Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C) Canada Metastatic Breast Cancer Dream Team.
Source: Terry Fox Research Institute
What is the best way to starve cancer cells? What role does obesity play in metastatic breast cancer and how does it affect the tumour microenvironment? Might combining a chemotherapeutic agent with a drug now used to treat diabetes be part of an effective therapy for metastatic breast cancer?
A study conducted at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) suggests screening breast cancer patients for the prolactin receptor could improve the prognosis for patients and may help them avoid unnecessary and invasive treatments. Using a database of 580 women with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), the researchers found that survival was prolonged in patients who expressed the prolactin receptor and that prolactin hormone was able to reduce the aggressive behavior of cancerous cells. It does so by decreasing their ability to divide and form new tumors.
A new study of over 3,400 Canadian women provides further evidence that exposure to air-pollution may increase the risk of developing breast cancer, especially among women who have not yet had their menopause.
