Research
“In the Black community, there’s a stigma about treatment, clinical trials and research. We have to understand that there’s not enough data to help us if we get sick. There’s not enough data to create treatments that will help us. We need to participate in clinical trials.” Sharon Elmore-Anderson Patient Advocate Living with Metastatic IBC
Sheila Johnson had never planned to be a fierce advocate for clinical trials, but her life took a dramatic turn when she lost her mother to metastatic breast cancer (MBC) in 2004. Just five years later, she found that she also had MBC when her doctor found the burning sensation she felt was the result of a tumor pressing against the wall of her chest. At the time of her diagnosis, the tumor had already spread to her ribs and liver. Following multiple rounds of chemotherapy, Sheila’s doctor offered her another option.
After the initial shock of a breast cancer diagnosis, patients with early breast cancer are immediately faced with important decisions about their treatment plan, including how to manage their risk of recurrence. As they navigate a modern landscape of treatment options, these patients must also make decisions that could dramatically impact their quality of life.
The connection between diet and breast cancer risk has been studied extensively over the past 20 years. According to the American Cancer Society, improved lifestyle habits, including a healthier diet may reduce the risk of many cancers, including breast cancer. As everyday consumers, we know a healthy diet can improve our overall physical fitness, as well as our energy levels and mental stamina, but can it also help reduce our breast cancer risk?
“Over the past 10 years, 19 FDA-approved breast cancer drugs have a connection to Komen. “We are able to show the points along the research pathway for each of the 19 drugs where Komen funding has helped in development and eventual clinical use, either through investments in direct studies or investments in people doing the research,” said Dana Brantley-Sieders.
Black women in the U.S. are about 40% more likely to die of breast cancer than white women and the cause of this is multifaceted.
One of the greatest challenges today in treating breast cancer is that tumor cells can evolve and change over time and become resistant to treatment. This treatment resistance is caused by mutations, or changes to the blueprint of a tumor cell’s DNA that allow it to adapt and survive. As a result, a treatment that was working well for a patient suddenly becomes ineffective.
In a paper published in JAMA Oncology, Susan G. Komen grantee Eileen Morgan, Ph.D., and her team at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) studied how the stage at diagnosis of breast cancer differed in 81 countries across the globe. In this international collaborative effort, researchers reviewed studies that used population-based cancer registry data on over 2 million women, which allowed the research team to compare stage at diagnosis across various countries, age groups and socioeconomic backgrounds.
The 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) brought together over 10,000 doctors, researchers, patient advocates and trainees to showcase promising new discoveries in breast cancer research that could dramatically improve treatment options for patients.
Patient advocates are helping researchers break new ground in breast cancer research today by providing patient perspectives and sharing personal experiences that will help advance science and save lives. Komen Scholar alum and Advocates in Science member Patty Spears is at the forefront of this exciting work that is rapidly changing the treatment landscape for patients with breast cancer.
In the ever-changing landscape of breast cancer research, Komen Scholar Sara Tolaney, M.D., M.P.H., is leading innovative clinical trials and studies that are bringing new treatment possibilities to patients. Her novel treatment approaches include the use of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), immunotherapies and CDK 4/6 inhibitors, and also tailoring therapy for patients with early-stage HER2-positive disease.
For Gaorav Gupta, M.D., Ph.D., a former Komen Career Catalyst Research (CCR) grantee, the true reward of being a breast cancer researcher does not come from a grant or a successful publication, but from knowing his work has led to an improvement in patients’ lives.
