Congratulations to our Clinician-Scientist Professor Andrew Scott AM for being awarded a National Breast Cancer Foundation grant.
This important grant, totalling nearly $700,000, will allow Professor Scott’s team to conduct research into novel antibody-drug combinations to treat breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia, and the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death.
The most aggressive breast cancer types include HER2+ breast cancer where a protein called HER2 is over-expressed, and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) which lacks HER2 proteins and proteins that serve as targets for therapy.
Professor Scott explains why research into these aggressive cancers is important:
“HER2+ breast cancer occurs in 20% of women diagnosed with breast cancer and is commonly treated with HER2-directed treatments such as monoclonal antibodies (trastuzumab and pertuzumab), antibody-drug conjugates (T-DM1) and tyrosine kinase inhibitors (e.g lapatinib). Despite these treatment options, resistance to current therapies is universal.”
“TNBC is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer that accounts for around 10–15% of all breast cancers. Compared to other types of breast cancer, TNBC is not able to be treated with HER2 or hormonal therapies, and therefore is commonly treated with chemotherapy and immunotherapy.”
“Our project aims to develop novel therapies that are more effective than current treatments for HER2+ and TNBC patients.”
Professor Scott’s team will test their novel antibody-drug combinations in breast tumour models to determine their uptake in tumours and their effects on tumour growth. He said:
“We propose to validate antibody-drug conjugates using our first-in-class, tumour-specific antibodies in HER2+ and triple-negative breast cancers, the most aggressive types of breast cancer. These antibodies target antigens expressed on tumour cells and in the tumour microenvironment.”
“Through direct targeting of tumours, we aim to achieve therapeutic responses with minimal side effects, and enhance tumour responses to immunotherapy by modulating the immune microenvironment.”
Finding treatment options that are more effective and tolerable for people with aggressive forms of breast cancer is critical. Congratulations to Professor Scott and his team, and thank you to the National Breast Cancer Foundation!