Tariq Shah1, Nguyen Nguyen2, Sara
Sukumar2, Zaver M. Bhujwalla1
1JHU ICMIC Program, Russell H Morgan Department
of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine ,
Baltimore, MD, United States; 2Breast Cancer Program, Sidney
Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center , Johns Hopkins School of Medicine,
Baltimore, MD, United States
The
absence of ER/PR/Her-2/neu receptors in triple negative breast cancers makes
them difficult to treat. Histone
deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors have been found to re-express the estrogen
receptor (ER). Combining an HDAC
inhibitor with hormonal treatment is therefore an attractive choice for
triple negative breast cancers. Here
we have investigated the effect of the HDAC inhibitor MS-275, the aromatase
inhibitor letrozole that suppresses estrogen, and their combination in vivo
in a triple negative human breast cancer xenograft using proton and
phosphorus MR spectroscopy. We observed a significant reduction of choline
metabolites following HDAC inhibition and combined HDAC and aromatase
inhibition.