The nighttime exposure to light people with breast cancer hurt?
Can have the night-time irradiation with weak light have a negative impact on the spread of breast cancer? Researchers found out now that nocturnal exposure to dim light causes a circadian disorder, which increases the formation of metastatic breast cancer in the bone.
In a recent study by the Tulane University Orleans, it turned out that already a slight nocturnal light increases the formation of metastatic breast cancer in the bone. The results of the study were presented at the ENDO, 2019, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society.
We are exposed to too much light at night?
“Until today it was still unclear that nocturnal exposure to dim light causes a circadian disorder, which increases the formation of metastatic breast cancer in the bone,” explains study author Dr. Muralidharan Anbalagan of Tulane University in a press release from the Endocrine Society. This knowledge is very important, because many breast cancer patients at night are exposed to excessive light in the bedroom (of mobile devices and other sources) or at work in the night shift.
Breast cancer can affect the bones and a lot of pain cause
According to an estimate by the National Cancer Institute, more than 150,000 American women breast cancer, metastatic or outside of the chest began to spread on the suffered alone in the year 2017. When breast cancer spreads, it is often up to the bones, where it can cause severe pain and brittle bones.
Melatonin protects against cancer and promoted the sleep
The researchers created in their study, a mouse model of bone metastases. They injected so-called estrogen receptor-positive human breast cancer cells, which have a low tendency to grow into the bone of the tibia of female mice. The animals were then exposed to a strong nocturnal circadian melatonin signal. It showed that this nocturnal Melatonin Signal is strong Anti-cancer effects causes and in addition, also promotes sleep.
How was the attempt?
All the mice were exposed every day for twelve hours of light. A group of mice spent the rest of the twelve hours in the dark, what helped them to produce high amounts of endogenous Melatonin. Another group of animals spent twelve hours in the light, followed by twelve hours in low light during the night, reducing their nocturnal melatonin production is suppressed. The subdued light was 0.2 Lux, what is the strength weaker than a typical night light, or the display of a mobile phone. X-rays then showed that mice that were exposed to a light-dim light cycle, and had much larger tumors, and increased bone damage, compared with mice that were kept in a normal Light-Dark cycle. The current research work has the importance of an intact nocturnal circadian Melatonin anti-cancer signal for the suppression of the growth of bone-metastatic breast tumor identified, emphasize the researchers. The aim of the study was to find an effective way to inhibit the progression of breast cancer metastases in the bone or to suppress. (as)