Grant: CIHR - ICR / Cancer Research Society Partnership - Res. Grants - Breast Cancer

Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) is the 2nd most common type of breast cancer after invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). Due to its diagnosis in later stages and poor response to chemotherapy, metastatic (i.e. spread to other organs) incurable ILC patients have shorter survival time than IDC patients. Identification of new effective therapies for metastatic ILC are urgently needed but their development has been impeded by a lack of available research tools to study metastatic ILC. To make progress, we made a new preclinical model of ILC that spontaneously spreads other organs which we can now use to identify factors driving ILC spread that could be targets for novel effective therapies. Our initial work identified Sox9 as a candidate that may be regulating the spread of ILC through its ability to promote ‘stem-like’ features and alter metabolism of ILC tumor cells. This work will test the ability of Sox9 to promote spread of ILC to new organs in our novel animal model and determine whether this is through its ability to promote 'stem-like' features in tumor cells or alter metabolism (via calcium signaling). Additionally, we will test the ability of inhibitors to some of the downstream pathways regulated by Sox9 (eg calcium channel blockers) to block the spread of ILC tumor cells in vivo. Upon completion of this study we will have identified a relevant therapeutic target and specific inhibitors that could be used to treat or prevent metastatic ILC tumor growth in patients.