The Immune Cell Macrophage Helps Cancer Spread

The 10 hallmarks of cancer include learning to become invisible to the immune system. At the same time, a cancer cell also affects immune cells by creating its own microenvironment .

Recently, the view that macrophages, a type of immune cell, facilitate the metastasis of cancer cells has been gaining support. In January 2018, Naturepublished a study showing that macrophages facilitate the metastasis of breast cancer cells.

Macrophages are among the most important cells of the immune system. They provide the initial immune response to infections. Macrophages are large, specialized cells. They recognize and destroy microbes that enter the body and infected cells.

In addition, macrophages also play a role in the development of breast tissue; they regulate how mammary glands spread throughout breast tissue. Many previous studies demonstrated the role of macrophages in cancer metastasis using advanced cancer models. What distinguishes this study is that it shows how macrophages in mammary glands help early-stage breast cancers metastasize.

The study used human tissue samples, mouse models and realistic breast organ models. According to the research results:

Macrophages cause biological changes in early-stage cancer cells, facilitating their migration from breast tissue to other tissues.

What Does This Study Mean for Cancer?

• Macrophages were found to facilitate the spread of breast cancer cells. Once again, a different aspect of the immune system and its importance in cancer has become clear.
• The effects of advances in genetics and biotechnology have begun to emerge in cancer research. Realistic organ models (organoids) allow differences in cancer cells to be identified.
• We will begin to see the effects of genetics- and immunology-based drugs in cancer treatment. Combining macrophage inhibitors with other treatments may be effective in preventing early metastasis in cancer.
• In the tumor microenvironment, this may guide the development of new drugs targeting immune cells.
• Identifying the macrophage types that help cancer metastasize may enable the development of next-generation targeted treatments. Such treatments may therefore prevent high-risk patients from developing metastatic disease.

It is important to emphasize that cancer can only be treated through approaches offered by modern medicine.