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New Marker Identified for Breast Cancer Metastasis

As reported in the March 24 online edition of the journal Clinical Cancer Research, researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center have identified a new marker for breast cancer metastasis called TMEM, for Tumor Microenvironment of Metastasis.  According to the new research, density of TMEM is associated with the development of distant organ metastasis via the bloodstream -- the most common cause of death from breast cancer.  This research may lead to the first test to predict the likelihood of breast cancer metastasis via the bloodstream, and ultimately to changes the way breast cancer is treated.

An estimated 40 percent of all breast cancer patients relapse and develop metastatic disease.  Traditionally, the likelihood of breast cancer metastasis is estimated based on tumor size, tumor differentiation -- how similar or dissimilar the tumor is compared to normal breast tissue -- and whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes.  TMEM density may prove to be more determinative of the likelihood of breast cancer metastatis than these traditional measures.

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