Australian researchers were able to identify specific targets for future breast cancer treatments through a sophisticated new protein screening technology to profile basal breast cancer.

Dr Falko Hochgräfe and Professor Roger Daly of Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research have examined protein behaviour in basal breast cancer through a process known as phosphorylation.

Hochgräfe said, “Our findings suggest that it would be a good idea to stratify patients according to which signalling proteins, or kinases, were found in their cancers. These kinases can then be targeted by specific therapies - and because several kinases are commonly activated in basal breast cancers, use of combination therapies that target more than one kinase, or multi-kinase inhibitors, is likely to more effective in the clinic.”

The research also said, “we also found a couple of novel markers - proteins which could potentially be used to identify this patient subset, and which might help create a more tailored therapy in the future.”

The findings on basal breast cancer, a particularly aggressive sub-type of breast cancer, is strengthened by a similar study in Melbourne. The Australian-led multinational research discovered the close link between a woman with early-onset breast cancer and her family.

The study found elevated rates of cancer in the immediate family and even close relatives of women who were diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 35. According to University of Melbourne professor John Hopper, “We wanted to find out what caused the early onset of breast cancer in these women and found some results we weren't expecting regarding their relatives.”

The Melbourne research leader and director of research at the university's Centre for Molecular, Environmental, Genetic and Analytic Epidemiology suggested that 'there could possibly be undiscovered genes causing breast cancer in these young women, and perhaps other cancers in their families.”

Basal breast cancers comprise 10 and 27 percent of all breast cancers. In Australia, over than 300 women are diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 35 every year.