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A groundbreaking discovery made on Long Island may offer a new path forward in the fight against triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), an aggressive form of the disease that resists hormone-based therapies.
Krystina Buksa, of Islip, was diagnosed with TNBC in January.
"If I can reach one person, help one person, then I feel successful," Buksa said.
Determined to raise awareness, she began sharing her journey on social media—documenting everything from chemotherapy treatments to upcoming surgeries and stressing the importance of self-exams.
"I wanted to share my journey to help others who might be young and scared," Buksa explained.
She noted a troubling pattern.
“I have connected with many women, all of us over 30 and under 40 who are either post-partum, pregnant or breastfeeding—so it is a strange and alarming thing,” she said.
Triple-negative breast cancer accounts for 10% to 15% of all breast cancer cases. It disproportionately affects younger and African American women, according to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
A group from the lab researched the role of RNAs called long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in cancer formation.
They discovered that a rarely studied lncRNA, previously implicated in gastric cancer, plays a part in triple-negative breast cancer, too.
This newly identified molecule could pave the way for the first effective treatment, specifically targeting TNBC.
“We would like to develop specific targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer,” he added.
For patients like Buksa, the science brings much-needed optimism.
“Cancer is not a death sentence; there is so much hope in medicine,” she said.
Click HERE to find more information about the research.
