New class of tumor targeting agents can search dozens of solid tumors -
Scientists from the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center (UWCCC) reported that a new class tumor targeting agents can search and find dozens of solid tumors, even illuminating brain cancer stem cells that resist current treatments.
more, years of animal studies and early human trials show that this tumor-targeting alkylphosphocholine (APC) molecule can provide two types of "payload" directly to cancer cells :. a radioactive or fluorescent imaging label or a radioactive drug that binds and kills cancer cells
results are reported in the current issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine, and also in the cover illustration and podcast of the journal.
platform targeting APC is a synthetic molecule that exploits a weakness common to cancers as diverse as breast, lung, brain and melanoma. These cancer cells do not have the enzymes to metabolize phospholipid ethers, a cell membrane component that can be easily erased by normal cells. When administered in an intravenous solution, APC will in the body - even through the blood-brain barrier. - And sticks to the membrane of cancer cells
Cancer cells absorb APC and imaging or treatment of horse drugs on molecular platform, and keep them for days or weeks resulting in cell imaging live or cancer treatment.
PCA analogues could score 55 of the 57 different cancers. This large study involved several steps, including tests in cancer cell lines in rodents, and rodents infected with human cancers and rodents and in human patients with various cancers such as breast, lung, colorectal cancer and glioblastoma (brain cancer).
"I am a skeptic, it's almost too good to be true, '' says co-lead author Dr. John S. Kuo, associate professor of neurosurgery and director of the complete brain tumor program at the UW school of medicine and public Health. "It is an anticancer agent targeting very large in terms of many different cancers that tested positive. The APC sometimes similar even revealed other cancer sites in patients who were small, asymptomatic and detected previously by doctors."
Kuo specializes in the treatment of brain tumors, and also led the group UWCCC CNS tumors running numerous clinical glioma trials, brain cancer that is incurable because current treatments leave behind cancer stem cells can seed and regrowth of cancer. He said it was encouraging that the APC also took similar cancer stem cells and are also likely to target for further processing.
"it is also potentially higher than current imaging methods because the MR or standard clinical PET imaging can give false positive results due to surgical scars, post-processing effects, inflammation or even infection, making it difficult to know if the cancer is really returned, '' he said
Kuo said the APC fluorescent intraoperative imaging could help make cancer surgery more effective and sure. any cancer cells that can not be safely removed can be targeted later with radioactive APC therapy. in addition, the APC imaging can avoid "false positive" of the current imaging, so that cancer patients can stay on effective therapies that would avoid the risks and costs of "second look" surgery.
the large multidisciplinary study team is led by co-senior author Dr. Jamey P. Weichert, associate professor of radiology, who co-founded and serves as scientific director of Cellectar Biosciences, Inc., the company based in Madison develop APC analogue platform for imaging and treating cancer.
Other UW faculty who contributed to the study include specialist lung cancer Dr. Anne Traynor, Associate Professor of Medicine; Cancer imaging experts Dr. Lance Hall, assistant professor of radiology, and Dr. Perry Pickhardt, professor of radiology. Pickhardt is pioneering the "virtual colonoscopy". A virtual colonoscopy film study shows how CPAs can distinguish between benign and cancerous polyps during a virtual colonoscopy performed on a rat model of colorectal cancer developed by Dr. William Dove McArdle Cancer Center at the UW.
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