Breast Cancer in Obese can be prevented by Blocking Placental Growth Factors

Emobileclinic Researchers” corner

It is believed that about half of the  breast cancer population are constituted by obese and overweight female. Obesity is an important risk factor for female breast cancer. Obesity also promotes cancer progression . Thus a recent study published on the Journal of Clinical Cancer seems to find a way out of preventing breast cancer for the obese and overweight.

‘The study focused on the effect of obesity on pancreatic and breast cancer since more than half of those diagnosed with such tumours are overweight or obese’ and discovered a co relationship between PIGF (placental growth factor) and VEGFR its receptor. Prior to their research a number of researchers have identified that obesity increased the risk of pancreatic and breast cancer models but the progression was not clear.The researchers conducted this research using fat and lean mouse and it was discovered that ‘blocking VEGFR-1 signalling shifted the immune environment towards prevention of tumour progression in obese but not in lean mice’ They also noticed the same when PIGF was blocked. It was also discovered that when PIGF/VEGFR-1 were blocked there was no weight gain in the obese mouse model but ”worsen a diabetes-like condition, a worsening that was alleviated by use of the common diabetes metformin, which also had beneficial anti-tumors effects.”

Speaking about this latest discovery, Rakesh K Jain PHD ,director of Steele Laboratory  says ‘with the majority of pancreatic and breast cancer patients being overweight at diagnosis, uncovering potential therapeutic targets within mechanisms that associate obesity with poor cancer prognosis is the first step towards developing remedies that could disrupt this association and significantly improve patients outcome”

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