Huge breast cancer breakthrough as scientists discover key way to prevent deadly disease

Scientists have discovered how breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body—and it could revolutionise how the disease is treated in its earlier stages.

Scottish researchers discovered that cancer changes the metabolism—the way cells make and use energy—of specific immune cells.

They found that they release a certain sort of protein, called uracil, which can be used as a 'scaffold' by cancerous cells, allowing them to grow on other organs.

Scientists were able to block the uracil-powered scaffold from forming in mice.

This restored the ability of the creatures' immune systems to kill secondary cancer cells, and stop the cancer from spreading.

The scientists achieved this by blocking an enzyme called uridine phosphorylase-1 (UPP1), which produces uracil.

They hope that detecting uracil in the blood may help spot early signs the cancer spreading—and blocking UPP1 with drugs could stop the spread before it even starts.

The findings of the study, which was carried out in the labs of Professor Jim Norman and Professor Karen Blyth, were published in the Embo Reports journal.

Lead author of the study, Dr Cassie Clarke, said: 'This study represents a major shift in how we think about preventing the spread of cancer.

'By targeting these metabolic changes as early as possible we could stop the cancer progressing and save lives.'

Meanwhile, Dr Catherine Elliot, director of research at Cancer Research UK, said: 'Metastasis—when cancer spreads—is a major factor in breast cancer becoming harder to treat, especially if the cancer returns months or even many years later.

'This discovery gives us new hope for detecting and stopping metastasis early and ensuring people have many more years with their families and loved ones.'

The research may also help stop the spread of other cancers to other parts of the body, too added Simon Vincent, chief scientific officer at Breast Cancer Now.

'Now we need more research to see if this new insight can be turned into new drugs that stop secondary breast cancer, and potentially other secondary cancers,' he said.

The team of researchers at from the Cancer Research UK Institute and University of Glasgow are now testing the ability of drugs to prevent cancer occurring.

It comes amid an alarming prediction earlier this year that breast cancer deaths in the UK will soar by more than 40 per cent by 2050.

By the same year, globally, another study estimated there will be 3.2million new cases and 1.1million breast-related deaths per year if current trends continue.

The disease is far more prevalent in those over 50, which is the age women typically experience the menopause.

It is the most common type of cancer in the UK, taking the lives of around 11,500 Britons and 42,000 Americans each year.

Early signs of the disease are a lump in the breast, swelling or lump in the armpit, change in size or shape of breasts, discharge of fluid from the nipple.

Others include dimpling, a rash or redness on skin, as well as crusting, scaly or itchy skin on the nipple.

Despite years of pleas from cancer charities, more than a third of women in the UK still do not regularly assess their breasts.

However, it should be part of your monthly routine, so you can notice any unusual changes, charity CoppaFeel previously said.

You can check in the shower, when you are lying down in bed or in the mirror before you get dressed.

Because breast tissue isn't just found in your boobs, it's also important that men and women check the tissue all the way to their collarbone and underneath their armpit.

There is no right or wrong way to check your breasts, as long as you know how your breasts usually look and feel, says the NHS.

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK there are more than 55,000 new cases, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it strikes 266,000 each year and kills 40,000. But what causes it and how can it be treated?

What is breast cancer?

It comes from a cancerous cell which develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.

When the breast cancer has spread into surrounding tissue it is called 'invasive'. Some people are diagnosed with 'carcinoma in situ', where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.

Most cases develop in those over the age of 50 but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, though this is rare.

Staging indicates how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.

The cancerous cells are graded from low, which means a slow growth, to high, which is fast-growing. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after they have first been treated.

What causes breast cancer?

A cancerous tumour starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or alters certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply 'out of control'.

Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance, such as genetics.

What are the symptoms of breast cancer?

The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most are not cancerous and are fluid filled cysts, which are benign.

The first place that breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. If this occurs you will develop a swelling or lump in an armpit.

How is breast cancer diagnosed?

• Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may do tests such as a mammography, a special x-ray of the breast tissue which can indicate the possibility of tumours.
• Biopsy: A biopsy is when a small sample of tissue is removed from a part of the body. The sample is then examined under a microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.

If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess if it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound scan of the liver or a chest X-ray.

How is breast cancer treated?

Treatment options which may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments are used.

• Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or the removal of the affected breast depending on the size of the tumour.
• Radiotherapy: A treatment which uses high energy beams of radiation focused on cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells, or stops them from multiplying. It is mainly used in addition to surgery.
• Chemotherapy: A treatment of cancer by using anti-cancer drugs which kill cancer cells, or stop them from multiplying.
• Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the 'female' hormone oestrogen, which can stimulate the cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments which reduce the level of these hormones, or prevent them from working, are commonly used in people with breast cancer.

How successful is treatment?

The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small, and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumour in an early stage may then give a good chance of cure.

The routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 71 means more breast cancers are being diagnosed and treated at an early stage.

For more information visit breastcancernow.org or call its free helpline on 0808 800 6000

But one of the most popular methods online involves using the pads of your fingers.

Examining your entire breast and armpit area, simply, rub and feel from top to bottom of the breast.

You should also feel in semi-circles and in a circular motion around your breast tissue to feel for any abnormalities, according to a guide shared in a blog post by the University of Nottingham.

Then look in the mirror for any visual lumps, skin texture and changes and changes in nipple shape or abnormal discharge.

If you spot any changes, you should get it checked out by your GP.

Women aged between 50 and 70 should also be attending routine breast cancer screenings.