Bowel cancer resistance ‘could be linked to breast cancer gene’

A new study has found resistance to bowel cancer may be linked to a gene associated with breast cancer.

Researchers from the Institute of Pathology in Locarno, Switzerland and the Istituto Toscano dei Tumori, Livorno, Italy found too many copies of a gene linked to breast cancer may be the reason some bowel cancer patients do not respond to certain targeted drugs.

Dr Milo Frattini, lead researcher from the Institute of Pathology in Locarno, Switzerland, stated the breast cancer gene HER2 could also drive cancer growth in a significant number of bowel cancers.

"Because HER2 is a 'sister' molecule of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) that regulates a similar set of cancer-causing genes, this could explain how some cancers bypass the EGFR blockade put in place by drugs like cetuximab and panitumumab," he said.

Study co-leader Dr Federico Cappuzzo, from the Istituto Toscano dei Tumori, stated the research could open up new treatment options for people diagnosed with bowel cancer.

Cancer Research UK figures suggest bowel cancer affects more than 36,500 people in the UK every year, making it the second most common type of cancer for women and third for men.