Scottish scientists believe an essential mineral in Brazil nuts could help find new treatments to prevent breast cancer from spreading throughout the body.
Selenium, found in nuts, meat and grains, is an essential nutrient for human health.
But scientists have discovered that it also helps a particular type of breast cancer spread to other parts of the body where it can become inoperable.
The study was funded by Cancer Research UK.
In Scotland, around 4,900 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and around 15 per cent have triple negative breast cancer, a type that does not respond to hormone therapy.
Selenium, a mineral found in Brazil nuts, could help find new treatments to prevent breast cancer from spreading throughout the body (file photo)
A woman having a mammogram in a clinic. Around 4,900 women in Scotland are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and around 15 per cent have triple negative breast cancer.
American actress Angelina Jolie (pictured) underwent a double mastectomy in 2013 to reduce her risk of developing breast cancer.
It may be harder to treat, but can often be controlled through therapy and surgery unless it spreads.
Selenium is an antioxidant that helps defend the body against disease and cancer.
But scientists at the Scottish Cancer Research Institute UK in Glasgow found that cancer cells need selenium and, when they move to other parts of the body, they cannot survive without it.
The research team discovered that a lack of selenium could kill these cells, particularly those in the blood circulation that seek to spread to the lungs.
Research leader Dr Saverio Tardito said: “We need selenium to survive, so eliminating it from our diet is not an option; however, if we can find a treatment that interferes with the absorption of this mineral by the triple negative breast cancer cells, we could potentially prevent this cancer from spreading to other parts of the body.
‘It is not usually the breast cancer itself that is fatal, as it can often be successfully combated with treatment or surgery; It is when cancer spreads that it is most difficult to control.
“Since triple-negative breast cancer has fewer treatments to control it, finding a new way to prevent its spread could save lives.”
Triple negative breast cancer can be caused by a fault in the BRCA genes that increases the chances of developing certain types of cancer, including breast cancer.
About 70 percent of women with defective BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes will develop breast cancer by the age of 80.
American actress Angelina Jolie has the defective gene and underwent a double mastectomy in 2013 to reduce her risk of developing breast cancer.
Dr Sam Godfrey, Scientific Engagement Lead at Cancer Research UK, said: ‘Outcomes for patients with triple negative breast cancer may be worse than for other types of cancer. Research like this could be the key to preventing the spread of this type of cancer and would have a transformative effect on the way this disease is treated.’
Lisa Bancroft, from Dunfermline, Fife, who discovered she had the BRCA mutation aged just 27, welcomed the research.
She underwent a double mastectomy as a precaution four years ago and now, at 32, remains cancer-free.
Miss Bancroft said: “Research like this, which potentially gives people with triple negative breast cancer more treatment options, offers a lot of hope.”
‘Medical science is making great strides forward. For me, the research that uncovered the potentially catastrophic implications of carrying a defective BRCA gene all those years ago has changed the course of my life.
‘I only discovered that I was at higher risk of developing cancer because my aunt and dad were diagnosed with the disease and therefore had genetic testing.’
Lisa Bancroft (pictured with her daughter Emma) discovered she had the defective gene. She underwent a precautionary double mastectomy four years ago and now, at 32, remains cancer-free.
A consultant analyzing a mammogram to detect breast cancer. Triple negative breast cancer may be caused by a fault in the BRCA genes that increases the chances of developing certain types of cancer.
Miss Bancroft’s father and her aunt died of cancer, and her aunt of triple negative breast cancer.
Her six-year-old daughter Emma will also have to decide one day whether to undergo genetic testing to find out if she is affected.
“Medical science is advancing so quickly that my hope is that when this happens, it will be a completely different world,” he said.
“Of course, I hope Emma isn’t affected by this at all; there’s a 50 percent chance that she won’t be a carrier of a faulty genetic mutation and won’t have to deal with the consequences.”
‘However, if Emma is at higher risk of cancer, I very much hope that she will have many more options to choose from. Hopefully by then it won’t be as important as it is now.”