Freezing breast cancer tumours 'can slow progression'

Experts have discovered that freezing breast cancer tumours can slow progression of a disease which affects over one million people a year worldwide.

Specialists at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center claim that freezing a cancer kills it and also appears to generate an immune response that helps stop it spreading, leading to improved survival rates after surgery.

A team led by Michael Sabel, associate professor of surgery at the facility, conducted tests on mice which suggested that the process, known as Cryoablation, may be an effective way of reducing mortality rates.

"Cryoablation has strong potential as a treatment for breast cancer. Not only does it appear effective in treating the primary tumor with little cosmetic concerns, but it also may stimulate an immune response capable of eradicating any cells that have traveled throughout the body, reducing both local and distant recurrence, similar to giving a breast cancer vaccine," the expert said.

The study appears online in the Annals of Surgical Oncology and, based on these results, researchers are now conducting a clinical trial using cryoablation in patients with breast cancer.

In this trial, researchers used the rapid freezing technique to attempt to kill the tumour and halt progression, news which will affect the 45,000 sufferers in the UK.

Professor Sabel added that one thing the experts learned in the study is that not all cryoablation is equal, as the technique used to freeze the tissue can have a "significant impact" on how the immune system responds.

"The system we use today appears to be ideal for both destroying the tumor within the breast and generating an anti-cancer immune response," he concluded.

Posted by Stephen Tate.

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