Day: February 4, 2025

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Inhibitor Drugs to Treat Aggressive Breast Cancer Identified

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Colourised scanning electron micrograph of a breast cancer cell. Credit: NIH

A US study seeking more effective treatment for deadly metaplastic breast cancer has identified two inhibitor drugs with the potential to interrupt disease progression.

Houston Methodist and a team of researchers from across the country examined the biology of metaplastic breast cancer, comparing it to non-metaplastic triple negative breast cancer. They discovered metaplastic breast cancers typically exhibit two unique signaling pathways in their cell interaction. Researchers were able to disrupt these pathways using a class of inhibitors typically used to treat advanced cancers – phosphoinositide 3 kinase inhibitor (P13K) – in combination with a nitric oxide inhibitor (NOS) typically used to treat septic shock, cardiovascular disease and other conditions. When introduced to the cell, these drugs disrupted these pathways, making the treatment more effective.

A rare and aggressive form of disease, metaplastic breast cancer typically grows faster and is more likely to metastasise than other breast cancers. It is also more likely to recur after successful initial treatment. Patients with metaplastic breast cancer will often receive the same treatment as a patient with triple negative breast cancer, another aggressive and deadly form of the disease. However, metaplastic breast cancer often does not respond well.

The findings are published in Nature Communications The study’s corresponding author is Dr Jenny Chang, the executive vice president, president and CEO, and chief academic officer at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute.

“This is a significant finding because it offers a promising therapeutic option for one of the most aggressive and difficult-to-treat subtypes of breast cancer,” said Chang. “We have the potential to improve outcomes for patients who currently face limited treatment options and poor prognoses, marking an important step forward in cancer research and therapy.”

The first author, Dr Tejaswini Reddy, hopes these findings will help develop a specific care plan for metaplastic cancer patients and improve long-term survival of the disease.

“Our findings highlight a promising therapeutic combination that could hopefully change the landscape of metaplastic breast cancer treatment. Translating this research into a National Cancer Institute-funded clinical trial is crucial to improving outcomes for patients facing this rare and aggressive disease. Moreover, this approach may have broader implications, potentially benefiting patients with other cancers with similar biology,” said Reddy. 

The findings of this preclinical study have translated into a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-funded phase 2 clinical trial to help patients with this rare and aggressive malignancy (https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05660083).

Source: Houston Methodist

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Talking about HPV, Cervical Cancer and the HPV Vaccine

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As the Department of Health gears up for the first round of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccinations for girls between 9 and 14 from February 3 to March 28, we put the spotlight on HPV and cervical cancer. The focus is on: Empowering, Preventing and Early Detection of cervical cancer. It’s important because cervical cancer kills more South African adolescents and women aged 15 to 44 than any other cancer.  It can be successfully treated, if caught early enough but it’s far better to prevent it in the first place.

Dr Themba Hadebe, Clinical and Managed Care Executive at Bonitas, provides some insights and important information about cervical cancer – caused by persistent infection with HPV – why it is essential to screen for the virus and the vaccination that can help prevent it.

Why a vaccine against HPV?

HPV infects the cells of the cervix and, in some cases, the virus can persist – leading to abnormal changes in the cells that may eventually become cancerous. Over 99% of all cervical cancers are caused by persistent infection of high-risk types of HPV, including HPV-16 and HPV-18.

‘To help prevent cervical cancer, we have expanded our preventative care benefits to include the HPV vaccine across all plans,’ says Dr Hadebe.  ‘As recommended by The World Health Organization (WHO), this is 2 doses for females aged 9 to 14 years and 3 doses for females aged 15 to 26 years, per lifetime’.

Screening for HPV and cervical cancer: Screening is essential to mitigate the risk of developing cervical cancer and aims to identify cervical cell changes and detect early cervical cancers before they cause symptoms. Two screening tests help with detection:

  • Pap smear: Cervical cancer is usually a slow-growing cancer, which may not have immediate symptoms but can be found with regular pap smear tests (a procedure in which cells are scraped from the cervix and looked at under a microscope). The test looks for cell changes (pre-cancers) in the cervix that may progress to cancer if not treated.
  • HPV test: This test looks for the virus, particularly HPV-16 and HPV-18 that cause 90% of cervical cancers.

It is recommended that between the ages of 21 and 65, women should have a pap smear every two years and, from the age of 30 onwards, a pap smear and HPV test should be done every 5 years.

Signs and symptoms: The symptoms of the HPV virus can include: Lesions on the genital area as well as darker lesions on other parts of the body, to painful bumps on your upper limbs and skin growths on the balls of the feet and heels.

The power of prevention: ‘Talk to your daughter about important lifestyle choices she must make’, says Dr Hadebe. ‘These may be uncomfortable conversations to have but they’re vitally important to protect her from HPV and subsequent diseases.’ Discussion points include the fact that the HPV vaccination is her best opportunity for protection from the virus.  In addition, she needs to consider the following:

  • Delay having intercourse until she’s 18: The earlier she starts, the higher her risk of HPV infection
  • Use protection every time she is physically intimate: HPV is spread through skin-to-skin contact
  • Limit her number of intimate partners
  • Avoid smoking: Smoking damages the cells throughout the body, not just those in the lungs. Smoking not only increases her risk for cancer but it also increases her risk of dying from cancer, as well as from other diseases.
  • Maintain a healthy weight: The greater your body fat percentage, the higher the risk of cancer. Eating a nutritious, balanced diet and exercising regularly will help her manage her weight and strengthen her immune system.

If you develop cervical cancer: Just like other cancers, cervical cancer is graded according to severity. From in situ, which means it hasn’t spread to nearby tissue, through stage one (it’s still in the original organ and small).

If it progresses, it spreads to the surrounding lymph nodes and, in the most severe form, the cancer has metastasised to surrounding tissues and other lymph nodes.

As cervical cancer develops, the following may occur:

  • Abnormal bleeding, for example bleeding after sex
  • Pelvic pain unrelated to the menstrual cycle
  • Heavy or unusual discharge
  • Increased urinary frequency
  • Pain during urination

‘Cervical cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women after breast cancer,’ says Dr Hadebe. ‘Yet it has a good chance of being cured, if diagnosed at an early stage and treated promptly. Which is why, it’s important to have regular pap smears to detect any changes in the cervix and to vaccinate young girls to protect them against possible HPV infection.’

Additional information on cervical cancer and HPV can be found on the Bonitas website: www.bonitas.co.za or the Department of Health https://www.health.gov.za

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AI Boosts Efficacy of Cancer Treatment, but Doctors Remain Key

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Photo by Tara Winstead on Pexels

A new study led by researchers from Moffitt Cancer Center, in collaboration with investigators from the University of Michigan,  shows that artificial intelligence (AI) can help doctors make better decisions when treating cancer. However, it also highlights challenges in how doctors and AI work together. The study, published in Nature Communications, focused on AI-assisted radiotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Radiotherapy is a common treatment for cancer that uses high-energy radiation to kill or shrink tumors. The study looked at a treatment approach known as knowledge-based response-adaptive radiotherapy (KBR-ART). This method uses AI to optimize treatment outcomes by suggesting treatment adjustments based on how well the patient responds to the therapy.

The study found that when doctors used AI to help decide the best treatment plan, they made more consistent choices, reducing differences between doctors’ decisions. However, the technology didn’t always change doctors’ minds. In some cases, doctors disagreed with the AI suggested and made treatment decisions based on their experience and patient needs.

Doctors were asked to make treatment decisions for cancer patients, first without any technological assistance, and then with the help of AI. The AI system developed by the researchers uses patient data like medical imaging and test results to recommend changes in radiation doses. While some doctors found the suggestions helpful, others preferred to rely on their own judgment.

“While AI offers insights based on complex data, the human touch remains crucial in cancer care,” said Moffitt’s Issam El Naqa, PhD. “Every patient is unique, and doctors must make decisions based on both AI recommendations and their own clinical judgment.”

The researchers noted that while AI can be a helpful tool, doctors need to trust it for it to work well. Their study found that doctors were more likely to follow AI suggestions when they felt confident in its recommendations. “Our research shows that AI can be a powerful tool for doctors,” said Dipesh Niraula, PhD, an applied research scientist in Moffitt’s Machine Learning Department. “But it’s important to recognise that AI works best when it’s used as a support, not a replacement, for human expertise. Doctors bring their expertise and experience to the table, while AI provides data-driven insights. Together, they can make better treatment plans, but it requires trust and clear communication.”

The study’s authors hope that their findings can lead to better integration of AI tools and collaborative relationships that doctors can use to make more personalised treatment decisions for cancer patients. They also plan to further investigate how AI can support doctors in other medical fields.

Source: H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute

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The Importance of Vitamin D during First Trimester

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Photo by Michele Blackwell on Unsplash

Low vitamin D levels in the first trimester of pregnancy are associated with higher rates of preterm birth and decreased foetal length, according to a new study led by researchers in the Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences. This research provides evidence that early pregnancy or even preconception may represent critical time points for intervening with women who have low vitamin D status, to optimise pregnancy outcomes.

Celeste Beck, who earned her doctorate in nutritional sciences from Penn State in 2023, and Alison Gernand, Beck’s doctoral adviser and associate professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State, led the study. Their results were recently published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

“More than 25% of women who are pregnant or lactating have lower than recommended levels of vitamin D,” Gernand said, explaining that prior research has demonstrated the effect of vitamin D on foetal skeletal growth, maternal immune function at the foetal interface, and the development of the placenta in pregnant women. “A lot of the development early in pregnancy requires vitamin D, so we conducted this study to better understand how early-pregnancy vitamin D status is related to pregnancy outcomes.”

Most prior studies on vitamin D status in pregnant women have measured vitamin D concentrations starting in the second trimester or later, the researchers said. The researchers said this study, to their knowledge, is the first to examine both first and second trimester maternal vitamin D status in relation to longitudinal foetal growth and pregnancy outcomes.

The researchers at Penn State partnered with colleagues at the University of Utah to test blood samples from 351 women collected as part of the Nulliparous Pregnancy Outcomes Study: Monitoring Mothers-to-Be, which was funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and recruited pregnant women across the United States between 2010 and 2013.

According to the Institute of Medicine, less than 50nmol/L represents an insufficiency of vitamin D. When the researchers compared outcomes for women with vitamin D insufficiency (less than 50nmol/L) to women with sufficient vitamin D (more than or equal to 50nmol/L), they found no statistical differences in pregnancy outcomes. However, when the researchers compared pregnancy outcomes across a wider range of vitamin D concentrations, they found that pregnant women with first trimester vitamin D concentrations lower than 40 nmol/L were four times more likely to experience a preterm birth compared to women with vitamin D concentrations more than or equal to 80nmol/L.

Despite the higher risk of preterm birth in women with low vitamin D status, the researchers cautioned that these results were based on a very low number of preterm births in this study and recommend that additional, larger studies be conducted.

The researchers also observed an association between first-trimester vitamin D concentrations and certain foetal growth patterns. Women with higher levels of vitamin D experienced a small but statistically significant increase in foetal length.

Source: Penn State

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Reaffirming Commitment to the Fight Against Cancer This World Cancer Day

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4 February 2025 – As the world unites to mark World Cancer Day, L’Oréal South Africa reaffirms its unwavering commitment to supporting individuals affected by cancer through groundbreaking initiatives in research, patient care, and workplace inclusion. Over the past three years, efforts have been strengthened through a series of global and local programmes designed to ease the journey of cancer patients and survivors while advancing scientific innovation in supportive care.

The L’Oréal Dermatological Beauty team leads this commitment with two major initiatives. Save Your Skin focuses on skin cancer prevention and early detection, promoting safe sun habits and strong photoprotection. Fight with Care addresses the dermatological side effects experienced by over 80% of cancer patients undergoing treatment, advancing scientific research in supportive care, training healthcare professionals, and providing direct support through educational resources and partnerships with 50 NGOs worldwide, including the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC).

Recognising the profound impact of cancer on employees and their families, the Share & Care programme, now in its tenth year, has been expanded to provide financial assistance to employees diagnosed with cancer, psychological and emotional support services, and practical aid to ease their journey through treatment and workplace reintegration. This programme aligns with our leadership in the Working with Cancer charter, advocating for workplace inclusion, care, and long-term support.

Believing in the transformative power of beauty, L’Oréal has introduced dedicated wellness therapy programmes in hospitals and specialised care centres. These include skincare treatments to alleviate the side effects of cancer therapies, beauty services such as make-up sessions to restore confidence and enhance well-being, and therapeutic massages and wellness sessions to improve overall quality of life.

In South Africa, L’Oréal has partnered with the Look Good, Feel Better campaign for over 20 years. This initiative has been a beacon of hope for women undergoing cancer treatment, providing beauty workshops designed to help them regain confidence and a sense of normality during their journey. By offering expert guidance on skincare, make-up, and emotional well-being, the programme empowers participants to face their treatment with renewed strength.

As part of ongoing efforts to support underserved communities, L’Oréal is introducing the Healing Pouch initiative, which donates full-size oncology skincare essentials—including cleansers, emollients, sun care, and wound creams, to hospitals, NGOs, and patient associations. These products, specifically formulated for sensitive and oncology-affected skin, provide essential relief while reinforcing the belief that touch, and tenderness are powerful agents of healing.

“As we mark World Cancer Day, we stand in solidarity with cancer patients, survivors, healthcare professionals, and our own employees,” said Thandi Kunene, Corporate Affairs Lead at L’Oréal South Africa. “Through continued investment in research, support programmes, and longstanding partnerships such as Look Good, Feel Better, we remain steadfast in our mission to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those affected by cancer.”

Through these global and local initiatives, L’Oréal remains committed to advancing cancer awareness, fostering inclusion, and delivering tangible support, because care is at the heart of everything we do.