A new preclinical study suggests that attacking triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in two ways at once can kill cancer cells, slow tumor growth and limit the cancer’s spread. Researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center—Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC—James) developed the approach. The findings could help guide new treatments for this hard-to-treat form of breast cancer.

“This study points to a possible new way to fight TNBC by pairing a targeted ‘smart bomb’ drug with a treatment that shuts down the cancer cells’ energy factories,” said Xiaoguang “Margaret” Liu, Ph.D., the study’s corresponding author and a member of the OSUCCC—James Translational Therapeutics Program. Liu also is a professor in Ohio State’s College of Engineering. “These results are an early step. If the approach continues to work in laboratory studies and clinical trials, it could lead to a more effective treatment with fewer side effects than current options.”

The findings were published Aug. 18, 2026, in Cell Reports Medicine. The study helps scientists better understand how triple-negative breast cancer may survive treatment. It suggests the cancer may be more vulnerable when one treatment delivers a drug directly to cancer cells and another cuts off their energy supply.