Grant: Operating Grant: SU2C Canada - Metastatic Breast Cancer Dream Team

Current treatments for metastatic breast cancer are ineffective for disease that has spread (metastasized) to other organs. Moreover, while new immunotherapies are promising for other cancer types, their effect in breast cancer is limited. Therefore, when laboratory scientists uncover promising new leads, it is imperative to determine how they can be applied to benefit patients. Our findings and preclinical results have shown that the final stage of protein production is dysregulated in all metastatic breast cancer cells. We and others have shown that new drugs blocking this do not affect the production of all proteins equally, but selectively inhibit proteins needed for the aggressive behavior of breast cancer cells. We have also shown that these drugs can unleash immune responses suppressed by tumor cells, potentially stimulating the immune system to attack metastatic breast cancer. In this project, we will test these drugs in sophisticated models of metastatic breast cancer and bring them to the clinic for phase I trials in breast cancer patients. Our team unites world-leading Canadian fundamental and translational scientists with breast cancer clinical trials experts. We will carry out a pan-Canadian clinical trial testing our new therapeutic strategy and use unique resources, including extensive banks of tumour tissue and specialized animal models, to determine how these drugs work and how future treatments can be improved. We will identify all proteins whose production is altered by these drugs, identify responsive breast cancer subtypes and therapeutic combinations that allow us to maximize their effects, and determine whether their immunity-enhancing actions can be harnessed to further increase their effectiveness. We will function as a closely-knit multidisciplinary team, sharing data, methods, materials and information on an ongoing basis with advice from dedicated, passionate patient advocates to ensure progress in this innovative project.