Grant: Operating Grant - PA: Alberta Cancer Foundation - Research (bridge funding)

Treatment of breast and other cancers by a combination of surgery and chemotherapy is often unsuccessful and patients die. This is explained in two ways. Some tumor cells survive the surgery or they may have already spread to other areas of the body. Secondly, these cells fail to be killed by chemotherapy. Treatment with chemotherapeutic agents often becomes ineffective because of the progressive development of resistance to the effective use of these agents. The survival and spread (metastasis) of breast tumours to other organs is promoted by growth factors such as estrogens and epidermal growth factor. Several treatments of breast cancer depend on blocking these effects. Our project concentrates on a newly discovered growth factor called lysophosphatidate, which also plays an important role in promoting breast cancer. We showed that lysophosphatidate causes breast cancer cells to migrate to other organs and to resist being killed by several agents that are commonly used to treat breast cancer. So far, relatively little is know about lysophosphatidate with respect to the progression of breast cancer. Our proposed work will concentrate on discovering the mechanisms used by lysophosphatidate to promote the growth of breast tumours, their metastasis and the development of resistance to chemotherapy. This knowledge will be used to identify new therapeutic targets that can be used to block these adverse effects of lysophosphatidate. These developments should lead to the introduction of companion therapies that can be used to increase their effectiveness of existing treatments and to overcome the development of chemo-resistance. Overall, this should enhance our ability to increase the quality of life for breast cancer patients and maximize the chance of survival.