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Skin-Cancer Drug Uses Genetics
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| Contributor | Jason |
| Last Edited | Jason Jun 03, 2009 02:46am |
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| Category | News |
| Media | Newspaper - Wall Street Journal |
| News Date | Wednesday, June 3, 2009 08:00:00 AM UTC0:0 |
| Description | ORLANDO, Fla. -- Results from a small, early-stage clinical trial suggest the burgeoning strategy of attacking tumors based on their genetic characteristics could soon yield effective drugs against advanced melanoma, one of cancer's most lethal and hard-to-treat conditions.
Researchers reported that nine of 16 patients with the malignant skin cancer experienced significant shrinkage of their tumors when given a drug known as PLX4032. Tumors in all of the patients had a mutation in a gene for a protein called BRAF that is believed to play a crucial role in up to 60% of patients with the cancer. Five other patients in the study whose cancers had a normal BRAF gene didn't respond to the treatment.
Melanoma experts said the findings were impressive, but cautioned that they need to be confirmed in larger, more rigorous studies. Excitement about positive data in a recent small study of another drug turned to disappointment when large studies failed to substantiate the early results.
Whatever the ultimate outcome for the drug, the findings reflect the broader potential of genetic information to help researchers and clinicians select for treatment patients with higher chances of benefiting from a drug and steering those unlikely to respond to other options. The hope is that this approach will speed drug development and enable doctors to deliver care more cost-effectively. |
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