Introduction

Cancer is a disease in which some of the body’s cells grow uncontrollably and spread to other parts of the body.” (NIH Institute 2021). Carcinoma, the most common type of cancer, is formed by epithelial cells. Breast cancer falls under the category of adenocarcinoma, a type of carcinoma, or cancer that forms in epithelial cells that produce fluids or mucus. Breast cancer is cancer that begins as a growth of cells in the breast tissues. It is the second most common cancer diagnosed in women in the US after skin cancer.  In recent years, breast cancer survival rates have been increasing due to the development of new technologies for both diagnosis and treatment. The exact cause of breast cancer is still unknown, but some factors that can increase the risk of breast cancer are genetics (BRCA1 and BRCA2), age, hormones, and lifestyle choices. Some symptoms are a lump or mass in the breast or underarm, changes in breast size or shape, unusual discharge from the nipple, and skin changes on the breast. If you notice any of these symptoms, please visit the doctor to get diagnosed. Doctors will conduct a combination of physical exams (mammograms, ultrasounds, and MRIs) and biopsies (sample tissues are tested for cancer cells). The current treatments for breast cancer are surgery (lumpectomy), radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, and targeted therapy. Most women in stages I, II, and III are treated with surgery followed by radiation therapy. Another common treatment women choose is systemic drug therapy. For males, the most common treatment is a modified radical mastectomy. Another common treatment is breast-conserving surgery with lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy. Breast cancer is primarily associated with women, but men also suffer from the disease. In the U.S. approximately 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime as 1 in 833 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.

Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is broken up into two groups: invasive and non-invasive breast cancer. Invasive breast cancer means the cancer has spread into the surrounding breast tissue and split into two categories: invasive ductal carcinoma and invasive lobular carcinoma. Some types of invasive breast cancer include triple-negative breast cancer, aggressive invasive breast cancer that tests negative for estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors and does not have extra HER2 proteins (about 12% of all invasive breast cancers); triple-positive breast cancer, tests positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors and has an excess of HER2 proteins (about 10% of all breast cancer cases); inflammatory breast cancer, a rare and aggressive variant of invasive breast cancer (about  1% of all breast cancer diagnoses in the US); and Paget disease of the breast, a rare form of breast cancer where cancer cells accumulate in or around the nipple. Some types of non-invasive breast cancer or precancers are ductal carcinoma in situ and lobular carcinoma in situ. Both of these cancers are usually not life-threatening. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is breast cancer that has not spread outside the milk ducts where it started (about 16% of all breast cancer diagnoses are DCIS) and lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) is breast cancer that has not spread outside the lobules were it started.

Current Treatments and Developments

Breast cancer survival rates, the percentage of people who are alive longer than 5 years. The current rate is 91.2%, a significant increase compared to the 1975-1979 rate of 74% and slight increase compared to the 88.5% rate from 2015. The survival rate is 99% when breast cancer is only localized in the breast at the time of surgery, but the success rate drops to 86% if it is spread to the lymph nodes and significantly drops to 30% if the cancer is spread to other organs. Radiation therapy studies have shown 50-70% reduction for local recurrence after a lumpectomy. It can also be used as a treatment of early-stage breast cancer, but once the cancer enters the advanced stages, it can be used to control symptoms and improve quality of life. Radiation therapy is often used in conjunction with other treatments such as chemotherapy and hormonal therapy. Chemotherapy is used to reduce tumor size before surgery as well as reduce the risk of recurrence in patients with early-stage breast cancer. Some new developments in the field of breast cancer are Oncolytics Biotech’s announcement from their BRACELET-1 trial, City of Hope’s chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy, and AI prediction led by Dr. Charles Perou. Oncolytics Biotech’s BRACELET-1 is a study to find out the possible anti-cancer effect of pelareorep in combination with chemotherapy [paclitaxel] and avelumab in treating a type of breast cancer called Hormone Receptor positive (HR+)/Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 negative (HER2-) breast cancer, which is either locally advanced or has metastasized (cancer that has spread in your body). The strong efficacy results from the trial provides a foundation for a large Phase 2 study. The company plans to submit the drug for FDA approval in early 2025 for assistance with the phase 2 trial. This study provides clear evidence that pelareorep has the ability to improve outcomes in patients with advanced breast cancer. City of Hope doctors are leading a clinical trial that uses (CAR) T cell therapy, a type of immunotherapy that was developed on-site to treat patients with HER2-positive breast cancer that has spread to the brain. “What we are trying to do is to train the immune system to kill cancer,” Jana Portnow, M.D. a professor in the Department of Medical Oncology & Therapeutics Research and co-director of the Brain Tumor Program. This is one of the few clinical trials led by City of Hope using CAR T cells in hopes of making a breakthrough. The AI prediction technology led by Dr. Chares Perou is developing computational models using data and machine learning methods to identify new biomarkers that can predict outcomes for patients with triple-negative breast cancer. Another team at UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has developed an AI model that can categorize epigenetic factors into distinct groups. AI assistance provides multiple advantages such as monitoring current status of patients, providing statistics for possible alternatives, and learning from new data gathered daily. With the advent of new tools and technology to speed up the earliest stages of drug discovery, later stage clinical trials, and eventual commercialization - there is renewed hope for patients suffering from cancer to get the therapeutics they need to overcome the most devastating of diseases.

Revilico Mission

At Revilico, our mission is to transform the future of drug discovery through cutting-edge artificial intelligence and high-throughput screening technology. We are dedicated to pioneering breakthroughs in targeted cancer treatments, starting with Triple Negative Breast Cancer and expanding our capabilities to address colorectal, lung, and pancreatic cancers. By harnessing the power of computational disease modeling and physics driven AI technology in a very high throughput way, we strive to accelerate the development of life-saving therapies, reduce costs, and make these innovations accessible to all. Our goal is to democratize the pharmaceutical industry and provide hope and healing for those who need it most.

Our approach integrates the latest advancements in AI-driven drug discovery with real-world laboratory applications. After months of refining our AI models to identify potential drug candidates with unprecedented precision and efficiency, we are now transitioning from computational research to wet lab validation. This milestone enables us to actively discover and develop our own novel therapies, ensuring that our solutions move rapidly from concept to reality. In parallel, we are building a comprehensive platform that empowers other researchers and pharmaceutical companies to optimize their drug development pipelines. By offering our AI-powered software solutions, we enable partners to streamline their processes, minimize trial-and-error, and significantly shorten the time required to bring new drugs to market. This dual approach—direct drug discovery and software-as-a-service(SAAS)—positions Revilico at the forefront of innovation, committed to making high-quality, targeted cancer treatments available more quickly and affordably to those in need.

Written and Constructed by Joshua Minami, Christopher Korban, Christian Chung

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• BreastCancer.org. "Types of Breast Cancer." BreastCancer.org, 2023, www.breastcancer.org/types#articleEndAdvisors.

  
  

• City of Hope. "3 Breast Cancer Treatment Innovations to Look for in 2024." City of Hope, 2023, www.cityofhope.org/3-breast-cancer-treatment-innovations-to-look-for-in-2024.

  
  

• Mayo Clinic Staff. "Breast Cancer: Symptoms and Causes." Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 2023, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/breast-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20352470.

  
  

• National Cancer Institute. "A Study to Assess Overall Response Rate by Inducing an Immune Response in Patients With Breast Cancer (BRACELET-1 Study)." ClinicalTrials.gov, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2020, www.cancer.gov/research/participate/clinical-trials-search/v?id=NCI-2020-03947#:~:text=1%20Study%20%2D%20NCI-,A%20Study%20to%20Assess%20Overall%20Response%20Rate%20by%20Inducing%20an,and%20Paclitaxel%20%2D%20BRACELET%2D1%20Study.

  
  

• National Cancer Institute. "What Is Cancer?" National Cancer Institute, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2023, www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/what-is-cancer.

  
  

• Oncolytics Biotech Inc. "Oncolytics Biotech Announces Key Progress and Upcoming Studies for Breast and Pancreatic Cancer Treatments; Prepares for FDA Accelerated Approval Path." PR Newswire, 2023, www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/oncolytics-biotech-announces-key-progress-and-upcoming-studies-for-breast-and-pancreatic-cancer-treatments-prepares-for-fda-accelerated-approval-path-302267617.html.

  
  

• Susan G. Komen. "What’s New in Breast Cancer." Susan G. Komen, 2023, www.komen.org/breast-cancer/whats-new-in-breast-cancer/#:~:text=Lasofoxifene%20is%20a%20new%20type,a%20median%20of%2013%20months.