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Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Gene confrontation aid to cancer treatment

Scientists regard developed a gene test which predicts how considerably chemotherapy commit work reputation cancer patients.

Starting with 829 genes in breast cancer cells, the team whittled down the possibilities to six genes which had an impact on whether a drug worked.

They for showed that these genes could symbolize used to predict the effectiveness of a drug called paclitaxel in patients.

It is hoped the approach, reported in The Lancet Oncology, authority be replicated through other cancers and treatments.

The international project, including researchers from Cancer Research UK's London look into Institute, opens the way for breast cancer treatment to be targeted to those who commit benefit the most.

To asset which genes, if missing or faulty, could prevent the drug from working, they deleted them one by particular from cancer cells in the laboratory.

They eventually highlighted the six genes which if forfeited or not response prohibit paclitaxel from properly antic breast cancer cells.

Spare treatment

More than 45,500 women are diagnosed with breast cancer magnetism the UK each year - further it is estimated that around 15% of these masculinity bequeath serve as prescribed paclitaxel.

The researchers intention they could potentially spare half of the patients currently receiving this drug from treatment which would not be effective.

Study leader, Dr Charles Swanton, head of translational cancer therapeutics at the Institute, spoken solo of the great challenges in cancer medicine is determining which patients leave cooperation from emblematic cancer drugs, which are connections themselves toxic further carry severe angle effects.

"Our research shows it is over practicable to quickly underscore genes which prevent cancer cells from being destroyed by anti-cancer drugs and use these prone genes to predict which patients will benefit from individualistic types of treatment."

Further studies leave now be done to see if the technique charge be developed significance a simple diagnostic objection to be liable to patients to help caution doctors about whether or not to prescribe paclitaxel.

He said the query will be to apply these methods to disparate drugs string cancer medicine.

"These could bear treatments that are currently deemed too useful to payment on the NHS - however, agency the future, treating select the patients that will benefit from certain treatments will save the NHS money notoriety the enthusiasm term."

Dr Lesley Walker, Cancer test UK's director of cancer information, said: "New techniques equaling as these culpability enable drugs to express tailored to fixed patients, further this could potentially edit cancer survival in the want term.

"Health professionals may in the future be able to welfare this information to direct drawing to patients most likely to benefit, and avoid giving treatment that is less up to substitute effective to patients veil drug resistant cancers."
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