Receptor Promotes Cancer Spread in Dense Breast Tissue

It’s long been known that women with denser breast tissue are more likely than others to develop aggressive breast cancers that spread. Cancer cells on the edge of a breast tumor have a receptor called DDR2 that attaches to collagen, the protein associated with dense, fibrous breast tissue. Researchers have found that the interaction of DDR2 with collagen starts a biochemical chain of events that promotes high levels of SNAIL1, a protein associated with the spreading of breast cancer cells to other parts of the body. Scientists will now pursue DDR2 inhibitors as possible cancer drugs.
Source: NIGMS Biomedical Beat - Category: Research Source Type: news