Dr Desmond Powe

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
University of Nottingham
Nottingham

Could beta-blockers help tackle breast cancer?

Dr Des Powe is investigating ways to prevent breast cancer from spreading. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, so his work could benefit thousands of people every year.

Dr Powe and his team are finding out if drugs called beta-blockers could help to stop breast cancer cells from spreading to other parts of body. Beta-blockers are normally used to treat high blood pressure and heart problems, but research in the lab has shown they can also stop cancer cells from moving around.

The next step is to see if these drugs can help women with breast cancer to live longer. Many people already take beta-blockers, so the researchers are using thousands of existing medical records to see if women with breast cancer who are taking the drugs tend to have a better outcome than women who aren’t.

If the effects of beta-blockers look promising, the researchers will start a clinical trial to see how helpful these drugs could be. It’s not yet clear if this approach could help save lives, but Dr Powe’s work will give us important clues in the fight to stop cancer spreading.