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What gaps, or Research funding
roadblocks exist that • MBC research has been underfunded (approximately <5% of breast cancer
hinder advances in funding)
MBC research?
• Overall cancer research is also underfunded (0.1% of the Federal budget.). Other
areas receive more funding including the military, farm subsidies, education, and
others

Matched tissue samples

• To advance MBC research, better access to tissue is needed, including the
primary tumor, metastatic tumor, and interval blood samples collected and
banked between the primary and development of the recurrent, metastatic
tumor
• MBC tissue from different populations needs to be studied (e.g., MBC in younger,
premenopausal women vs. MBC in older women)

Model systems

• The previously available laboratory models for MBC research were discouraging,
but in 2013 and 2014, several laboratories have demonstrated interesting MBC
models

• MBC models need to be validated and standardized across laboratories
Academic-initiated clinical trials

• Academics have not focused enough on MBC (in basic research, clinical trials, or
cooperative groups), although focus is rapidly shifting to MBC as a priority
• MBC research is complicated, costly and time consuming (e.g., early BC studies
in animals can be 2 or 3 months, MBC animal studies can take up to 9 months to
run a single set of animal experiments)

• Lack of academic involvement has resulted in MBC trials being led by the
pharmaceutical industry and business interests, including correlative science
studies

Epidemiology

• Need to better understand the epidemiology of MBC: How many patients have
a recurrence? What are their treatments and responses? How long do they
survive?