OMG Cancer Breakthrough (Breast/Prostate/Ovarian)

[Vajra]

BBC NEWS | Health | New cancer drug 'shows promise'

New cancer drug 'shows promise'


Researchers say a new type of cancer treatment has produced highly promising results in preliminary drug trials.

Olaparib was given to 19 patients with inherited forms of advanced breast, ovarian and prostate cancers caused by mutations of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.

In 12 of the patients - none of whom had responded to other therapies - tumours shrank or stabilised.

The study, led by the Institute of Cancer Research, features in the New England Journal of Medicine.


CASE STUDY
Julian Lewis
Julian Lewis, 62, was treated with olaparib after being diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer.

Within a month or two levels of a key chemical marker of cancer went down to a low level, and have now stayed low for more than two years.

In addition, secondary tumours in his bones have almost disappeared.

He has experienced minor side-effects, such as stomach discomfort and mild nausea, but he said: "I hope to carry on with this for as long as possible.

Partly the aim is the obvious one of keeping my cancer cells in check, but there's a broader goal too: to help find out how long this drug can be used safely in other people."

One of the first patients to be given the treatment is still in remission after two years.

Olaparib - a member of a new class of drug called PARP inhibitors - targets cancer cells, but leaves healthy cells relatively unscathed.

The researchers, working with the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, found that patients experienced very few side-effects, and some reported the treatment was "much easier than chemotherapy".

Researcher Dr Johann de Bono said the drug should now be tested in larger trials.

He said: "This drug showed very impressive results in shrinking patients' tumours.

"It's giving patients who have already tried many conventional treatments long periods of remission, free from the symptoms of cancer or major side-effects."

Olaparib is the first successful example of a new type of personalised medicine using a technique called "synthetic lethality" - a subtle way of exploiting the body's own molecular weaknesses for positive effect.

In this case the drug takes advantage of the fact that while normal cells have several different ways of repairing damage to their DNA, one of these pathways is disabled by the BRCA mutations in tumour cells.

Olaparib blocks one of the repair pathways by shutting down a key enzyme called PARP.

BRCA MUTATIONS
BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations weaken the cells' ability to repair DNA damage
They are thought to be responsible for about 5% of breast and ovarian cancers, and about 1-2% of early onset prostate cancers
Women with a BRCA mutation have a risk of up to 85% on breast cancer, and up to 60% on ovarian cancer
Men with a BRCA mutation have a risk of up to 15% on prostate cancer

This does not affect normal cells because they can call on an alternative repair mechanism, controlled by their healthy BRCA genes.

But in tumours cells, where the BRCA pathway is disabled by genetic mutation, there is no alternative repair mechanism, and the cells die.

Cancer cells with the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations are the first to be shown to be sensitive to PARP inhibitors.

But there is evidence that olaparib will also be effective in other cancers with different defects in the repair of DNA.

Professor Stan Kaye, who also worked on the study, said: "The next step is to test this drug on other more common types of ovarian and breast cancers where we hope it will be just as effective."

The researchers say the process of drug evaluation and registration may have to be revamped to take consideration of the fact that new generation cancer drugs target specific molecular defects, rather than types of cancer.

Dr Peter Sneddon, of the charity Cancer Research UK, said: "It is very encouraging to see the development of 'personalised treatment', tailored to the requirements of the individual patient, becoming a reality as it offers the opportunity to design new drugs that are truly selective.

"Although development of this drug is in its early stages, it is very exciting to see that it has the potential to work when other treatment options have failed."

Heard about this while watching NBC News earlier, so I thought I'd share (took me a while to find any articles...).

[Skjie]

Not the first time a cancer drug has shown promise in tests.

[Zilong]

Now if only it cures swine flu...

[Drex]

The whole idea of "well it works in the short-term, let's mass-produce" is usually the source of shit like Fen-Phen, Vioxx, and pretty much every diet pill, isn't it?

I'll be less skeptical when it's a real breakthrough, ie shows results in the long-run.

[Slapper]

bitches get all the cures

[SDSD]

It was a Phase I trial...You're not going to see this on the market for at least another 10 years, assuming Phase II/III trials go well, and then the FDA doesn't regulate some bullshit on AZ.

[Vuitton]

bitches get all the cures

Well, we're spending a lot of time making sure they're surgically enhanced for our pleasure. Might as well keep them cancer free, right?

[Kuya]

Don't want them tities getting no cancer.

[HadesChubbs]

The whole idea of "well it works in the short-term, let's mass-produce" is usually the source of shit like Fen-Phen, Vioxx, and pretty much every diet pill, isn't it?

I'll be less skeptical when it's a real breakthrough, ie shows results in the long-run.

Mass produce some diet & exersize, works short and long term. Diet pills never work, they're just caffeine and some other fast acting metabolism 'kick in the pants' pill that work for like 5 days.

Bad example to use when talking about a drug that may or may not show promise..

[Demosthenes11]

what drug company is it and are they givers to the news channels? lol

[HadesChubbs]

what drug company is it and are they givers to the news channels? lol

Dessert or gtfo.

[Jakson]

Now if only it cures swine flu...

We'll see a real cure for cancer when pigs fly!

Spoiler: show

hurr hurr hurr

[GRT]

cue "I Am Legend" references

[Lbelle]

cue "I Am Legend" references

This is what I thought of when I was reading the article, heh. Also, my friend's father died of cancer tonight so any breakthroughs regarding cancer are more than welcome.

However, I'm still with the theory that there won't ever be a public cure for cancer because so many pharmaceutical companies would lose so much money if it was out there.

[SDSD]

This is what I thought of when I was reading the article, heh. Also, my friend's father died of cancer tonight so any breakthroughs regarding cancer are more than welcome.

However, I'm still with the theory that there won't ever be a public cure for cancer because so many pharmaceutical companies would lose so much money if it was out there.

There will never be one cure for cancer. Cancer is a collection of diseases, and as such will require treatment consisting of a collection of drugs targeting various molecular switches and pathways.

And cancer drugs will always make money for drug companies, 'cure' or not. The disease is a function of aging, so we're going to be seeing it for a long, long time--in developed countries anyways.

[Kobb]

bitches get all the cures

Thank god women will soon be prostate cancer free!

[Day]

My mom's breast cancer just reoccurred, (she had lumpectomy last year), this time she will probably have the whole breast removed. Cancer is a horrible disease, any positive steps in treatment/cures are fully welcome in my book. It's interesting to note that they were treating advanced stages here and having success.

[Kryssan]

Sorry for the tardiness in this post, this topic also holds a great deal of interest to me.


Unfortunately, we're not going to see a cure for cancer until they get much more indepth into gene therapy. Cancer isn't really a disease per se, its a mutation of normal genes caused by incomplete copies of RNA/DNA, which can be affected by heritage/lineage or external influences.


This drug appears to be like the others, in that it targets specific proteins and their reactions aimed at pausing the routine of cancer. But they can't stop it that way, only slow it down. Granted, I suppose hypothetically if you could stall it indefinately that could be in essence called a cure, but its not what I would dictate as one. Our bodies are horrible at efficiency, and until the genetics research gets to the point that it can fix these latent errors we just won't see this cure.


Since cancer is compounded by radiation and the average human sees 300~600 mrem a year depending on location just from cosmic and the radon/radium decay chain, the stochastic effects will always be a part of our lives, regardless of how healthy we attempt to live. Hence why your chance of cancer continually increases as you age. In addition to having less and less RNA/DNA due to inefficient cell splits as you age you get the added bonus of dealing with the stochastic effect radiation poses for mutation. And that's not even taking into account lineage or other external influences you are guaranteed to be exposed to. Granted, its a help, these attempts for treatment, but it once again is not a cure.


I fear most those that continue to bring religion in against it. We could be so much farther along now if the delusions of sheep would stop blocking the research at every turn.

[Shenrien]

bitches get all the cures

Cause women have Prostates right?

[untouchable]

i am legend irl?