Doctors hail new approach
Drug binds cancer genes
A new treatment that kills two genes responsible for causing pancreatic cancer — one of the most fatal forms of the disease — is being hailed as a possible breakthrough.
Dr. James Cleary, an oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, said pancreatic cancer research had been “left behind” — but not anymore.
“We’re just starved for an advance,” said Cleary, “We’re kind of stuck right now using traditional chemotherapies.”
Such an advance was announced yesterday by a team at the University of Houston that developed a drug that blocks cancer cells from leaving the pancreas and spreading to other organs.
The treatment, which is not yet being tested in patients, is man-made and works as a targeted therapy, binding to cancer-causing genes to kill them.
Dr. Wei Wang, research associate and professor at the University of Houston, said her research will have a “major” impact on patients.
“We found that it’s very effective to treat cancer and at the same time it has no toxicity,” she said.
According to Wang, the drug could apply to other types of cancers including liver and breast cancer, meaning the effects can extend beyond pancreatic cancer therapy.
“This is the first time we proposed that we wanted to kill the two genes at the same time,” said Wang. She and Dr. Ruiwen Zhang, of the University of Houston, published their findings in the journal Cancer Research. They will continue their research in hopes of taking the next step toward a clinical trial.
For now, the drug is only in its beginning stages, but Wang said that since the drug is man-made, it is easy to produce and give to patients.
Dr. Colin Weekes, a director for pancreatic cancer research at Massachusetts General Hospital, said he is optimistic about the benefits of the new treatment.
“I think it’s a very exciting and new approach to the disease,” he said, adding he is interested to see how the study will translate into patient care.
According to the American Cancer Society, over 44,000 people will die of pancreatic cancer this year in the United States and about 55,000 new cases will be diagnosed. The lifetime risk of being diagnosed is about 1 in 63 for men and 1 in 65 for women.
Pancreatic cancer was the second-leading cancer killer in Massachusetts last year — second only to lung cancer, according the American Cancer Society.
Wang said the treatment won’t be used in patients for several years as they are unsure of possible risks and side effects. However, she is optimistic about continuing research.