Investigation of jadomycin pharmacology and mechanisms of cytotoxicity in metastatic breast cancer

Breast cancer, the most common type of female cancer, is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in Canadian women. When breast cancer is fatal, it is often because cancerous breast cells move to other parts of the body where they form additional tumors. This process is called metastasis and breast cancer cells that do this are known as metastatic breast cancer cells. While treatments do exist to treat and improve the quality of life of women with metastatic breast cancer, metastatic breast cancer cells often develop resistance to existing treatments such as chemotherapy. One way that breast cancer cells develop resistance against chemotherapy is by increasing the number of drug pumps on the outer portion of the cell. These pumps move chemotherapy drugs out of the cell, preventing the treatment from working. Research in our laboratory has demonstrated that a group of molecules called jadomycins can kill several kinds of breast cancer cells, including those that can develop resistance to chemotherapy. The 1st goal of our new research project is to determine how jadomycins kill metastatic breast cancer cells. The second goal is to determine if jadomycins kill metastatic breast cancer cells without causing harm to noncancerous cells. The third goal is to examine the safety and ability of jadomycins to prevent breast cancer growth and metastasis in zebrafish and mice, two common laboratory animals used for cancer studies. By completing our research goals, we can better understand how jadomycins could be used to treat patients in a clinical setting, and also learn more about metastatic breast cancer as a disease. Ultimately, both of these outcomes relate to the mission of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation in that they have the potential to improve the treatment that breast cancer patients receive.