Breast cancer ribbon transforming into birds, symbolizing hope and metastasis prediction.

Decoding Breast Cancer: A Novel miRNA Risk Score for Predicting Metastasis

Lena Kashyap in Health & Wellness August 2025 • 4 min read.

"New research identifies a three-miRNA signature that can predict metastasis and survival in breast cancer patients, offering hope for personalized treatment strategies."

Breast cancer treatment is becoming increasingly personalized, thanks to biomarkers that help doctors tailor therapy and monitoring. One area of intense research is microRNAs (miRNAs), tiny molecules that play big roles in cancer development, including metastasis. Researchers are working hard to find miRNA signatures that can predict how a patient's cancer will behave.

A recent study has uncovered a promising new miRNA-based risk score that can predict both metastasis (the spread of cancer) and overall survival in breast cancer patients. This discovery offers a potential new tool for assessing risk and guiding treatment decisions.

This article will explore the details of this research, explaining how the risk score was developed, how well it predicts outcomes, and what it could mean for the future of breast cancer care. We'll break down the science in an accessible way, focusing on what this means for patients and their families.

How This New miRNA Risk Score Was Discovered?

Breast cancer ribbon transforming into birds, symbolizing hope and metastasis prediction.

Researchers started with a large dataset of information from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), which included miRNA expression data from over 1,000 breast cancer patients. They used an integrated, unbiased approach to find miRNAs whose expression patterns were linked to patient survival.

The process involved several key steps:

Identifying Differentially Expressed miRNAs: Comparing miRNA expression in patients with long-term survival (over 5 years) versus short-term survival (under 3 years) to find miRNAs with significantly different levels.
Reducing Redundancy: Removing highly correlated miRNA pairs to improve the stability and accuracy of the model.
Stepwise Selection: Using statistical methods to select the best combination of miRNAs for predicting survival.

This rigorous approach led to the identification of a three-miRNA risk score based on the expression levels of miR-19a, miR-93, and miR-106a. High expression of this 3-miRNA signature was associated with poor outcomes.

The Future of Breast Cancer Risk Assessment

This novel miRNA-based risk score represents a promising step toward more personalized and effective breast cancer treatment. By identifying patients at higher risk of metastasis and poor survival, this tool could help guide decisions about adjuvant therapy and follow-up care.

The researchers also found that the risk score was associated with specific biological processes linked to metastasis, such as angiogenesis (blood vessel formation) and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). This suggests that the miRNAs in the risk score may be directly involved in driving cancer spread.

While further research is needed to validate these findings and explore the clinical utility of the risk score, this study provides valuable insights into the role of miRNAs in breast cancer and opens new avenues for improving patient outcomes. The ability to predict bone metastasis, in particular, could be transformative, allowing for earlier intervention and improved quality of life.

About this Article -

This article was crafted using a human-AI hybrid and collaborative approach. AI assisted our team with initial drafting, research insights, identifying key questions, and image generation. Our human editors guided topic selection, defined the angle, structured the content, ensured factual accuracy and relevance, refined the tone, and conducted thorough editing to deliver helpful, high-quality information.See our About page for more information.

This article is based on research published under:

DOI-LINK: 10.1245/s10434-018-6859-x, Alternate LINK

Title: Novel Microrna-Based Risk Score Identified By Integrated Analyses To Predict Metastasis And Poor Prognosis In Breast Cancer

Subject: Oncology

Journal: Annals of Surgical Oncology

Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Authors: Tstutomu Kawaguchi, Li Yan, Qianya Qi, Xuan Peng, Stephen B. Edge, Jessica Young, Song Yao, Song Liu, Eigo Otsuji, Kazuaki Takabe

Published: 2018-10-11

Everything You Need To Know

What specific miRNAs are involved in this new risk score, and what do they indicate?

The three microRNAs identified in the study are miR-19a, miR-93, and miR-106a. The study found that high expression of this 3-miRNA signature was associated with poor outcomes in breast cancer patients. This means patients with higher levels of these specific miRNAs were more likely to experience metastasis and have a shorter overall survival time. This information could potentially be used to tailor treatment plans.

What is a miRNA-based risk score?

A miRNA-based risk score is a tool that uses the levels of specific microRNAs (miRNAs) in a patient's sample to predict their risk of certain outcomes. In this case, the risk score uses a three-miRNA signature. miRNAs are small molecules that play a significant role in regulating gene expression. The risk score provides a way to assess how a patient's breast cancer might behave, specifically predicting the likelihood of metastasis (cancer spread) and the patient's overall survival. The score helps to make treatment decisions.

What role did The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) play in this research?

The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) is a large dataset of information that researchers used to develop the miRNA risk score. The TCGA included miRNA expression data from over 1,000 breast cancer patients. Researchers analyzed this data to identify miRNAs whose expression patterns correlated with patient survival outcomes. By using the data from the TCGA, researchers were able to identify the three-miRNA signature.

What is metastasis, and why is it relevant to this study?

Metastasis is the spread of cancer cells from the original tumor to other parts of the body. It's a critical factor in cancer outcomes because it often signifies that the cancer has become more advanced and harder to treat. The study aimed to predict metastasis using a three-miRNA signature (miR-19a, miR-93, and miR-106a). The ability to predict metastasis is important because it can guide treatment decisions, such as the need for more aggressive therapies, which can impact a patient's survival.

Why is this miRNA-based risk score considered a significant step forward in breast cancer care?

The identification of this miRNA-based risk score is significant because it could lead to more personalized and effective breast cancer treatment. By identifying patients at a higher risk of metastasis and poor survival, doctors can make informed decisions about adjuvant therapy (treatment given after the primary treatment to lower the risk of the cancer returning) and follow-up care. This could potentially improve survival rates and quality of life for breast cancer patients. Future studies will be crucial to validate and refine these findings before widespread clinical use.