Egypt plans gold fund law, seeks to become regional refining hub    Egyptian pound dips against US dollar in early Thursday trade    Egypt's electricity minister, Copelouzos Group discuss progress on Egypt–Greece power interconnection    Renowned Egyptian novelist Sonallah Ibrahim dies at 88    Prime Developments, Osoul for Tourism Development launch EGP 1.25bn CLAN project in Hurghada    Egypt's FM discusses Gaza, bilateral ties in calls with Saudi, South African counterparts    Total financing by FRA-regulated entities hits EGP 640.1bn in June 2025    Egypt, Saudi Arabia reject Israeli plan to occupy Gaza    Egypt prepares to tackle seasonal air pollution in Nile Delta    27 Western countries issue joint call for unimpeded aid access to Gaza    Egyptian, Ugandan Presidents open business forum to boost trade    Al-Sisi says any party thinking Egypt will neglect water rights is 'completely mistaken'    Egypt's Sisi warns against unilateral Nile measures, reaffirms Egypt's water security stance    Egypt's Sisi, Uganda's Museveni discuss boosting ties    Egypt, Colombia discuss medical support for Palestinians injured in Gaza    Australia to recognise Palestinian state in September, New Zealand to decide    Egypt, Huawei explore healthcare digital transformation cooperation    Global matcha market to surpass $7bn by 2030: Nutrition expert    Egypt's Sisi, Sudan's Idris discuss strategic ties, stability    Egypt's govt. issues licensing controls for used cooking oil activities    Egypt to inaugurate Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November    Oil rises on Wednesday    Egypt, Uganda strengthen water cooperation, address Nile governance    Egypt's Sisi: Egypt is gateway for aid to Gaza, not displacement    Egypt, Malawi explore pharmaceutical cooperation, export opportunities    Korean Cultural Centre in Cairo launches folk painting workshop    Greco-Roman rock-cut tombs unearthed in Egypt's Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Study unpicks gene changes behind breast cancer
Research maps genetic codes of 21 breast cancers, helping scientists to understand disease's evolution and raising hopes of earlier diagnosis
Published in Ahram Online on 20 - 05 - 2012

Scientists have mapped the complete genetic codes of 21 breast cancers and created a catalogue of the mutations that accumulate in breast cells, raising hopes that the disease may be able to be spotted earlier and treated more effectively in future.
The research, the first of its kind, untangles the genetic history of how cancer evolves, allowing scientists to identify mutational patterns that fuel the growth of breast tumors, and start to work out the processes behind them.
"These findings have implications for our understanding of how breast cancers develop over the decades before diagnosis in adults and might help to find possible targets for improved diagnosis or therapeutic intervention in the future," said Mike Stratton, who led the research team.
Breast cancer kills more than 450,000 women a year worldwide and is the most common cancer among women, accounting for 16 percent of all cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
A study last year by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in the United States found that global breast cancer cases have more than doubled in just three decades, from 641,000 cases in 1980 to 1.6 million cases in 2010 - a pace that far exceeds global population growth.
DNA MUTATIONS
"We've known for many years now that all cancers are due to abnormalities of DNA...that occur in every single cell of the body over the course of a lifetime," said Stratton.
"But although we've known that, it's remarkable how rudimentary our knowledge is about what the processes are that cause these abnormalities, these mutations in our DNA."
Stratton's team sequenced the genomes of the 21 breast cancers and catalogued all the mutations. They found five major processes that cause one letter of code to be changed to another letter. Genetic code comes in four DNA letters, A,C,G and T.
Stratton said one of the most exciting findings was that one of these processes is characterized by small pockets of massively mutated regions of the genome.
This sudden "storm" of mutations is often seen in breast cancers, he explained in an audio briefing.
While his team don't fully understand the process behind these storms, they think it may be down to components of the cell whose normal function is to edit, or mutate, DNA.
"What we believe...is that sometimes in normal cells...this stops functioning properly and over-functions. It causes too many mutations and the accumulation of those mutations pushes the cell along the line to become cancer."
The team found that these and other mutations accumulate in breast cells over many years, initially slowly, but picking up greater momentum as genetic damage builds up.
By the time the breast cancers are large enough to be diagnosed, they are made up of a number of genetically related families of cells, with one family dominating the cancer, Stratton explained.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/42097.aspx


Clic here to read the story from its source.