QBCF STRATEGIC GRANTS PROGRAM
Research Factsheet
DR. PETER SIEGEL
THE GOODMAN CANCER RESEARCH CENTRE, McGILL UNIVERSITY, MONTREAL
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Defining Mechanisms by which CCN3 Promotes the Formation of Osteolytic
Bone Metastases
Dr. Peter Siegel
INSTITUTE
The Goodman Cancer Research Centre, McGill University
TOTAL RESEARCH BUDGET
$120,000
PROJECT TITLE
RESEARCH SUMMARY*:
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed and the second most lethal cancer affecting woman in Canada. Once breast
cancer cells have spread from the primary site to distant organs, the disease is largely incurable. The skeleton is a common
site for breast cancer metastasis. Using a mouse model of breast cancer metastasis to bone, we have identified a protein
called CCN3 that is highly expressed in cells capable of metastasizing to bone. We have also demonstrated that CCN3 is
expressed in bone metastatic lesions of breast cancer patients, making it a potential target in the management of bone
metastatic breast cancer. CCN3 favors the formation of bone destructive metastases through its ability to regulate two
major types of cells found in the bone microenvironment. The research described in this proposal will focus on the role of
the different domains within CCN3 that promote bone metastasis. In addition, we will determine if CCN3 can be detected in
primary breast tumors from patients that have experienced relapse to bone.
* This document is a non-scientific summary. For
more information, please contact Maxime
Dumais at the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation
at 514 871-1717 ext. 230 or at
mdumais@rubanrose.org.
* This document is a non-scientific summary. For
more information, please contact Maxime
Dumais at the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation
at 514 871-1717 ext. 230 or at
mdumais@rubanrose.org.