Understanding the resistance to treatments against breast cancer

Estrogens are responsible for the survival and proliferation of tumor cells in 70 percent of breast cancer cases. Nearly a third of the patients develop a resistance to anti-estrogen treatments such as tamoxifen after a few years. Biologists now reveal how tumor cells become refractory to the drug. They succeeded in identifying eight factors involved in the process of resistance to the treatment. The researchers also suggest various approaches for developing new therapies.