Challenges for Triple Negative Breast Cancer Treatment: Defeating Heterogeneity and Cancer Stemness

Mahmoud, Rinad; Ordóñez-Morán, Paloma; Allegrucci, Cinzia

Abstract

The Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) subtype is known to have a more aggressive clinical course compared to other breast cancer subtypes. Targeted therapies for this type of breast cancer are limited and patients are mostly treated with conventional chemo- and radio-therapies which are not specific and do not target resistant cells. Therefore, one of the major clinical challenges is to find compounds that target the drug-resistant cell populations which are responsible for reforming secondary tumours. The molecular profiling of the different TNBC subtypes holds a promise for better defining these resistant cells specific to each tumour. To this end, a better understanding of TNBC heterogeneity and cancer stemness is required, and extensive genomic analysis can help to understand the disease complexity and distinguish new molecular drivers that can be targeted in the clinics. The use of persister cancer cell-targeting therapies combined with other therapies may provide a big advance to improve TNBC patients’ survival.

Citation

Mahmoud, R., Ordóñez-Morán, P., & Allegrucci, C. (2022). Challenges for Triple Negative Breast Cancer Treatment: Defeating Heterogeneity and Cancer Stemness. Cancers, 14(17), Article 4280. https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers14174280

• Journal Article Type: Review
• Acceptance Date: Aug 26, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Sep 1, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022-09
• Deposit Date: May 23, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: May 27, 2025
• Journal: Cancers
• Electronic ISSN: 2072-6694
• Publisher: MDPI
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 14
• Issue: 17
• Article Number: 4280
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers14174280
• Keywords: Triple negative breast cancer, stemness, differentiation, persister cells, phenotype, drug resistance, tumour heterogeneity
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/10638311
• Publisher URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/14/17/4280