Science

Breast cancer accounts for 18% of all cancers in women, making it the foremost cause of cancer-related deaths in women. According to WHO, there were 2.8 million new cases of breast cancer, diagnosed worldwide, in 2020. Currently, routine mammography is the most routinely used method for the early detection of breast cancer. Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer could play a monumental role in reducing deaths. Most of the drugs available for the treatment of breast cancers, target either the endocrine (estrogen; ER) or growth factor (ErbB-1, ErbB-2 [human epidermal growth factor receptor 2; HER2], ErbB-3 and ErbB-4) receptors for therapy.  However, Triple Negative Breast Cancer lack all these receptors. It is the most aggressive type of breast cancer with incidence rate of 15%-20%, poor survival and high recurrence rates. In addition to the lack of ER/PR and HER2 receptors, complex heterogeneity and ethnic disparity associated with the manifestation of Triple Negative Breast Cancer further complicates its treatment options.

Newer drugs have been tried for the treatment of Triple Negative Breast Cancer, however, they offer incremental improvement in progression free survival by only 2.5-5 months. Therefore, there is no effective targeted therapy currently available in the market for Triple Negative Breast Cancer. This has created a dire need to identify molecular targets that are receptor independent, to develop effective target-based therapies for Triple Negative Breast Cancer. Additionally, cancer cells find roundabouts thereby developing resistance to existent therapies.  Therefore, a radically different approach for the treatment of Triple Negative Breast Cancer is imperative, one that identifies molecular targets that are receptor independent and directly targeting the cell proliferation machinery of the cancer cells.

We have identified a unique molecular target for Triple Negative Breast Cancer that is:

• Endocrine and growth receptor independent.
• Directly involved in all stages of Cell Proliferation; including DNA replication, Mitosis & Cytokinesis.
• A molecular target for all sub-types of breast cancer as well as other gynecological cancers.

Inhibition of this molecular target selectively kills cancer cells by necroptosis. Hence, this molecular target offers a dual benefit of developing therapeutics as well as companion diagnostic kits for Triple negative Breast Cancer.