Chemotherapy may cause breast cancer to SPREAD: Two commonly used drugs encourage the disease to develop in the lungs

Paclitaxel and doxorubicin cause breast tumours to release fluid-filled sacs
These sacs contain proteins that then circulate in the blood to the lungs
Proteins then trigger the release of other proteins and immune cells
These immune cells are linked to the survival and growth of lung tumours

Chemotherapy may cause breast cancer to spread, alarming research suggests.

The commonly prescribed chemo drugs paclitaxel and doxorubicin cause breast tumours to release proteins that then circulate in the blood until they reach the lungs, triggering the disease's onset in a new part of the body.

When scientists blocked this protein in a lab model, the cancer did not spread. They hope their findings will help make chemotherapy more effective.

Chemotherapy is often given to breast-cancer patients before surgery to shrink their tumours and make them easier to remove.

Known as 'neoadjuvant therapy', this also helps to save healthy breast tissue.

In some cases, chemotherapy can even eradicate the tumour entirely, with such patients being highly likely to remain cancer-free for life.

But the treatment does not always shrink tumours. If the growth resists neoadjuvant therapy, it is more likely to spread to other parts of the body.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6542277/Chemotherapy-cause-breast-cancer-SPREAD.html