Common Hormone Could Help Treat Breast Cancer, Study

A new study has revealed that women diagnosed with breast cancer can use the widely available female hormone progesterone to aid in their treatment.

Estrogen fuelled tumors are usually treated with drugs like tamoxifen which works by blocking estrogen receptors that are known to cause cancer cells to grow.

Patients who also have progesterone receptors were observed to have a better chance at remission even as scientists could not exactly explain the reason behind it.

In the latest study published in the science magazine Nature, scientists have shown how the progesterone receptors engage with the estrogen receptors to change their behaviour in breast cancer cells.

This helps to slow down the growth rate of the tumors.

"We have used cutting-edge technology to tease out the crucial role that progesterone receptors play in breast cancer - a mystery that has baffled scientists for many years," said lead author Jason Carroll from at Cancer Research UK's Cambridge Research Institute.

"This research helps explain why some breast cancer patients have a better outlook," Carroll said.

"This study in the cells shows how a cheap, safe, and widely available drug could potentially improve treatment for around half of all breast cancer patients," concluded Emma Smith, senior science communication officer at Cancer Research UK's Cambridge Research Institute.