Current cancer therapies focus on killing all of the cancer cells in the body. However, there are lots of studies suggesting that this is impossible to do.
A new treatment strategy suggests that doctors shouldn’t try to kill all of the cancer cells, but try to keep the cells in a low state that doesn’t increase symptoms.
In a recent study led by Purdue University, researchers discovered that a drug could help achieve this goal by preventing cancer from metastasizing.
The new finding may help develop a more effective treatment for cancer patients.
The study is published in Cancer Research. One author is Michael Wendt, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology.
In the study, the team identified a drug called fostamatinib, which is sold under the trade name Tavalisse.
The drug is used to treat people with a certain blood disorder known as chronic immune thrombocytopenia (ITP).
The researchers used the drug fostamatinib because it inhibits a particular protein, spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK), that is found in these disseminated cancer cells.
They focused on breast cancer because it is especially known to lead to metastasizing cancers years later.
They found that the drug could effectively block and contain metastatic cancer cells in mice.
The team says that with the drug, it is possible to block these cells in a dormant state. Even if a patient has these metastasizing cells, doctors can hold them in this state for a very long time.
Another good news is that this drug is with low toxicity and has fewer side effects compared with other cancer treatments.
It’s designed for people with chronic diseases so that they can take for a long time.
The team believes that the drug fostamatinib is a perfect candidate for this kind of years-long ‘lock-‘n’-block’ type of approach.
The finding provides a good example that a drug already on the market can be used for another use and can be a therapy to keep cancer from metastasizing.
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