• Progression to metastatic disease is usually a devastating event for most cancer patients here in Wales and throughout the world.
  • It is estimated that around 90% of cancer deaths are attributable to poorly treated tumour metastasis, where there are no truly effective drugs in the clinic. In addition, more than 30% of cancer patients will relapse and die because of recurrent metastatic disease despite recent improvements in application of adjuvant therapies.ÊÊ
  • Bcl3 is a proto-oncogene that plays a key role in regulating gene expression by controlling the activity of transcription factors, such as the NFkB that regulate a variety of cellular genes, including those associated with cell proliferation, apoptosis and the stress response. Bcl3 has been reported to be deregulated in breast cancer, but its suppression leads to a reduction in the migratory capacity of the bulk of the tumour cells, with a concomitant increase in migration/metastasis inhibitory genes. Based on these findings, Bcl3 was considered as a target for drug development, resulting in some promising therapeutic leads.ÊÊ