Preventing cancer recurrence. A big step forward

A sleeping enemy you can’t detect

Breast cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. No wonder clinicians keep searching for better ways to detect and treat it. Scientists in the United States have taken an important step: they managed to prevent the disease from coming back. Why does relapse happen?

In many people who have beaten cancer, so-called dormant cancer cells can remain in the body. Current imaging tests can’t detect them. These cells may “wake up” over time, trigger a recurrence, and even lead to metastases. The problem is, you can’t predict when — it might be years later, or even longer.

It now turns out that to destroy dormant cancer cells, it may be enough to give patients drugs already in use.

They achieved 100 percent effectiveness

The researchers studied 51 women who had beaten breast cancer within the past 5 years. Participants were divided into three groups: one took hydroxychloroquine, another everolimus, and the third took both drugs together. All of these medicines are already approved for medical use.

After 3.5 years of follow-up — results published in Nature Medicine — the team reported promising outcomes:

• 91.7 percent of women taking hydroxychloroquine had no recurrence;
• 92.9 percent of women taking everolimus also remained cancer-free;
• 100 percent of women taking both drugs had no relapse.

The results are welcome news for women worried about the return of cancer.

Why these drugs work — and preventing cancer recurrence

Before using the drugs in the study, the team tested them successfully in mice to better understand how they work. It turned out both medicines bolster two key processes that can help stave off relapse: autophagy and the mTOR signaling pathway.

Read how: Polish scientists will help children with cancer

Preventing relapse could get simpler

The findings could mark a breakthrough in modern medicine: with these two drugs, preventing cancer recurrence in breast cancer may become much simpler.

“The uncertainty about whether cancer will come back hangs over many people after treatment ends. Right now, we can’t predict if or when it will return — and that’s the problem we set out to solve. Our study shows that monitoring and targeting dormant cancer cells is a strategy with real potential. I hope it spurs further research,” said Dr. Angela DeMichele, professor at the Breast Care Center of Excellence at Penn Medicine.

If these results hold up in larger trials, they could move us closer to routine strategies for preventing cancer recurrence.

Read this article in Polish: Ważny krok w walce z rakiem. Nowotwór nie wrócił