Immune and nonimmune mechanisms mediate the mental stress-induced tumor growth in a xenograft model of breast cancer.

ABSTRACT: Excess mental stress may harm health, and even accelerate cancer initiation and progression. One fourth of breast cancer patients suffer mental stress including anxiety, sadness, or depression, which negatively affect prognosis and survival. However, the regulatory mechanism is yet to be determined. Herein, we applied unpredictable stress stimuli to the breast tumor-bearing mice to establish a xenograft model of breast cancer suffering mental stress, followed by behavioral tests, tumor growth tracking, immune analysis, miRNA screening, and tumor cell proliferation analysis as well. As a result, increased stress hormone levels in serum, decreased percentage of T and NK cells in both blood and tumor samples and accelerated tumor growth in vivo were observed in the mice exposed to mental stre

SUBMITTER: Ma W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8542049 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature