Pathway discovered to make the most common breast cancer tumor responsive to immunotherapy
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 22-Dec-2025 21:11 ET (23-Dec-2025 02:11 GMT/UTC)
A study from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, indicates that the high expression of the estrogen receptor is the main factor preventing the most common type of breast cancer, luminal breast cancer, from responding to immunotherapy.
The high presence of the estrogen receptor sequesters the LCOR molecule, whose action on tumor cells is necessary to make tumors visible to the immune system. In experimental models, the researchers found that combining immunotherapy with endocrine therapy allows LCOR to function and the immune system to attack the tumor.
At the same time, they have generated a modified version of the LCOR molecule that sensitizes tumors to immunotherapy, including those with hormone receptors. The next goal is to study this molecule combined with immunotherapy in clinical trials.
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