Hormone resistance in breast cancer linked to DNA ‘rewiring’


Researchers have revealed changes to the 3D arrangement of DNA linked to treatment resistance in ER+ breast cancer.

Reversing these changes, researchers say, has significant potential to help reduce breast cancer relapse.

A team led by Professor Susan Clark at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research showed that the 3D structure of DNA is ‘rewired’ in hormone resistant ER+ breast cancers, altering which genes are activated and which genes are silenced in the cells. The researchers published the findings today in the journal Nature Communications.

«For the first time, we’ve revealed crucial 3D DNA interactions that are linked to whether or not a breast cancer is sensitive to hormone therapy,» says senior author Professor Clark, who is Garvan’s Genomics and Epigenetics Research Theme Leader. «Understanding this process reveals new insights into how ER+ cancers evade hormone therapy, allowing them to grow uncontrolled.»

Tackling hormone resistance in breast cancer

The sex hormone estrogen can be an inadvertent driver of cancer growth — ER+ breast cancers grow when estrogen ‘docks’ to their cells. Treatment that blocks estrogen, known as hormone therapy, is successful at stopping cancer growth and reducing relapse, however many breast cancers become resistant to the treatment over time.


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Materials provided by Garvan Institute of Medical Research. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


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