Project description
The link between weight and breast cancer risk
Being overweight increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer after menopause. The exact link between breast cancer and weight remains undefined. The ERC-funded FAT-BC project will investigate whether increased adiposity helps tumours to survive and grow. Specifically, it will study the associations between patient adiposity and the genomic and transcriptomic features of the bulk tumour in breast cancer patients. It will also create a comprehensive atlas of breast cancer according to various patient and mammary adiposity measures for the two most common breast cancer histological subtypes. The data will be shared via a web-based data portal.
Objective
One out of 8 women develops breast cancer (BC) in her lifetime and 1 out of 2 is overweight or obese in industrialized countries. While heavier women have an increased risk of developing BC and heavier BC patients present with worse disease characteristics, BC is so far still treated regardless of patient adiposity because of the limited knowledge accumulated so far.
I hypothesize that increased adiposity provides a different soil for the tumor cells (the 'seeds') to grow, potentially leading to biological peculiarities of the tumor cells and the cells from the tumor microenvironment. To investigate this hypothesis, I will firstly study the associations between patient adiposity and the genomic and transcriptomic features of the bulk tumor in >2.700 BC patients (FATomics). Secondly, I will complement these findings at the single cell level by creating a comprehensive atlas of BC according to various patient and mammary adiposity measures for the two most common BC histological subtypes (FATlas). Special attention will be given to the mammary fat cells, the adipocytes, and how these help tumor cells to grow and affect treatment efficacy. State-of-the-art technologies such as single-nuclei RNA sequencing, spatial protein visualization and digital pathology will be applied. Thirdly, the FATlas data will be shared with the scientific community through a web-based dataportal (FATshare). Finally, using samples from a prospective in-house clinical trial, I will investigate whether adiposity-associated features are associated with anti-proliferative and/or immune response to immunotherapy and endocrine therapy (FATrial).
FAT-BC integrates complementary and multidisciplinary approaches with state-of-the-art technologies and will build upon my expertise in BC biology. The results should lead to the identification of potential strategies to tailor BC treatment according to adiposity, a still unmet clinical need in the context of personalized medicine.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2020-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
3000 LEUVEN
Belgium
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.