It turns out that breast cancer spreads faster at night when the patient is sleeping.
If tumors have metastasized when malignant cells leave the place where they first formed to form another mass, the risk of death also increases. Until now, scientists had assumed that the lethal process that often renders cancers incurable occurs continuously throughout the day.
TUMORS WAKE UP WHEN PATIENTS SLEEP
But new evidence has revealed that this happens mostly at night. Swiss academics believe tumors ‘wake up’ while patients sleep. Cancer cells that form tumors at night can also divide more rapidly, increasing their potential to metastasize compared to cells released during the day.
This is thought to be caused by high levels of melatonin, the hormone that determines our sleep patterns. Experts believe that the findings, especially about breast cancer, work in the same way in other types of tumors.
In the research team, Prof. “In our view, these findings may indicate that healthcare professionals should systematically record the time they perform a biopsy,” said Nicola Aceto.
BREAST CANCER
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), breast cancer is one of the most common cancers, with 2.3 million people worldwide contracting the disease each year. If detected early, breast cancer treatment is usually successful.