Tamoxifen suppresses brain metastasis of estrogen receptor-deficient breast cancer by skewing microglia polarization and enhancing their immune functions.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Brain metastasis of breast cancer exhibits exceedingly poor prognosis, and both triple negative (TN) and Her2⁺ subtypes have the highest incidence of brain metastasis. Although estrogen blockers are considered to be ineffective for their treatment, recent evidence indicates that estrogen blockade using tamoxifen showed certain efficacy. However, how estrogen affects brain metastasis of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains elusive.

Methods

To examine the effect of estrogen on brain metastasis progression, nude mice were implanted with brain metastatic cells and treated with either estrogen supplement, tamoxifen, or ovariectomy for estrogen depletion. For clinical validation study, brain metastasis specimens from pre- and post-menopause breast can

SUBMITTER: Wu SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7977276 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature