There has been considerable success in the treatment of breast cancer in recent years, if detected in its early stages.

However, breast cancers are very prone to metastasise, and cause secondary tumours in bone, liver, lungs, brain and lymph nodes.

Once solid metastatic tumours are established, the likelihood of complete remission falls, and patients can suffer symptoms generated by metastases that affect quality of life.

Metastasis in breast cancer is a complex multistep process. Genetic changes in tumour cells give rise to aggressive metastatic cells, and these home in on specific organs because of a complex web of interactions with the organ microenvironment.

Understanding the key molecular mechanisms of these metastatic processes will lead to improvements in the prognosis and treatment of breast cancer patients.

MetaBre is an EU-funded research project that aims to identify the underlying mechanisms that cause metastasis in breast cancer.