Yahoo News: Drug Stops Cancer in Its Tracks

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We all hope this turns out to be of some significance, and especially

for colon cancer therapy

Drug Stops Cancer in Its Tracks

Mon Mar 14, 7:02 PM ET

MONDAY, March 14 (HealthDay News) -- An experimental drug that stops

cancer cell division and triggers tumor death has been developed by

researchers at Temple University.

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The drug, called ON01910, interferes with the activity of a gene

called Plk1, which plays an important role in cancer spread. Previous

research found that Plk1 is present at higher levels in tumors and in

cancer patients with poor survival rates. That work also discovered

that when Plk1 is blocked cancer cells can't divide and tumors die.

The Temple team tested ON01910 on 94 different human cancers.

" We found that ON01910 was a potent inhibitor of human tumor growth

and also worked well with several existing cancer drugs, often

inducing complete regression of tumors. Someday it might work either

as a single drug or in combination with other drugs, " research leader

Prem Reddy, a professor of biochemistry and director of the Fels

Institute for Cancer Research at Temple, said in a prepared statement.

" Our drug stops tumor cells from reaching normal cells three ways.

First, it blocks invasion, next it blocks angiogenesis [the growth of

surrounding blood vessels] and finally, it induces tumor cell death, "

Reddy said.

The study appears in the March issue of Cancer Cell.

Currently, ON01910 is being assessed in a Phase I clinical trial

involving up to 56 people with advanced and metastatic cancers.

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