Mineral found in Brazil nuts could be key to saving lives from breast cancer

a brazil nut is seen — Could a mineral in brazil nuts help fight a rare cancer? (Picture: Getty)

A mineral found in brazil nuts could help unlock the key to preventing the spread of triple negative breast cancer, researchers say.

Triple negative breast cancer can be hard to treat but is often manageable through therapy and surgery, unless it spreads to other parts of the body when it can become inoperable.

The study, funded by Cancer Research UK, suggests that limiting the antioxidant effects of selenium, a popular ingredient of multivitamin supplements found in everyday foods such as meat, mushrooms and cereals, could be the secret to controlling this form of the disease.

The action of selenium, a key antioxidant, was assumed to be useful in fighting against cancer cells.

However, the research found that cancer cells are in great need of selenium, especially when the cells are sparse, away from densely packed cell clusters.

Once packed together, triple negative breast cancer cells produce a type of fat molecule containing oleic acid (commonly found in olive oil) which protects them from a type of cell death called ferroptosis brought on by selenium starvation.

Lisa Bancroft (left) and her daughter Emma — Lisa Bancroft discovered she had a genetic fault putting her at risk of the rare cancer (Picture: PA)

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Research lead, Dr Saverio Tardito, of the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute in Glasgow, and also of the Centre for Cancer Research at the Medical University of Vienna, said: ‘We need selenium to survive, so, removing it from our diet is not an option, however, if we can find a treatment that interferes with the uptake of this mineral by triple negative breast cancer cells, we could potentially prevent this cancer spreading to other parts of the body.

‘It is not usually breast cancer itself that proves fatal as it can often be tackled successfully with treatment or surgery, it is when the cancer spreads that it proves harder to control.

‘With triple negative breast cancer having fewer treatments to control it, finding a new way to prevent it spreading could be life-saving.’

Dr Saverio Tardito, of the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute in Glasgow — Dr Saverio Tardito helped to lead the research (Picture: PA)

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She chose preventative surgery to remove both her breasts and now, aged 32, is still cancer-free.

She said: ‘Research like this, which potentially gives people with triple negative breast cancer more treatment options, offers so much hope.

‘Medical science is making huge leaps forward. For me, the research that uncovered the potentially catastrophic implications of carrying a faulty BRCA gene all those years ago, has changed the course of my life.’