Karen Knudsen: 3% – the stunning percentage of breast cells in healthy women to exhibit aneuploidy
Karen Knudsen, Executive Strategic Advisor and Immediate Past CEO of the American Cancer Society (ACS), posted on LinkedIn about recent paper by Yiyun Lin et al., titled “Normal breast tissues harbour rare populations of aneuploid epithelial cells” published on Nature.
Authors: Yiyun Lin, Junke Wang, Kaile Wang, Shanshan Bai, Aatish Thennavan, Runmin Wei, Yun Yan, Jianzhuo Li, Heba Elgamal, Emi Sei, Anna Casasent, Mitchell Rao, Chenling Tang, Asha S. Multani, Jin Ma, Jessica Montalvan, Chandandeep Nagi, Sebastian Winocour, Bora Lim, Alastair Thompson, Nicholas Navin
“Today’s number: 3%.
That’s the stunning percentage of breast cells in healthy women found to exhibit aneuploidy (gross chromosomal aberrations), many consistent with those seen in invasive breast cancer, according to a new study by Lin et al. Strikingly, ‘all women harboured rare aneuploid epithelial cells
(median 3.19%) that increased with age’.
The findings raise profound questions:
• Is this the very beginning of cancer, or do these DNA alterations commonly occur and trigger immune system clearance?
• Do women with these changes face a higher risk of developing invasive breast cancer – or not?
As single-cell sequencing technology allows us to delve deeper into the biology of cancer initiation, it’s crucial to determine:
- What is clinically meaningful?
- When should we act, so as to balance the importance of early detection with avoidance of causing harm through overtreatment?
Put simply, this study provides a deeper glimpse into the underpinnings of cancer initiation and the opportunities to refine early detection and intervention strategies. Nice work, Lin et al.”
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