• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Thursday, July 31, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Cancer

Breast cancer drugs could help treat resistant lung cancers

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
December 26, 2018
in Cancer
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

A class of drugs used to treat certain breast cancers could help to tackle lung cancers that have become resistant to targeted therapies

A class of drugs used to treat certain breast cancers could help to tackle lung cancers that have become resistant to targeted therapies, suggests a new study in mice from the Francis Crick Institute and the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR).

The research, published in Cell Reports, found that lung tumours in mice caused by mutations in a gene called EGFR shrunk significantly when a protein called p110α was blocked.

Drugs to block p110α are currently showing promise in clinical trials against certain breast cancers, so could be approved for clinical use in the near future. The new findings suggest that these drugs could potentially benefit patients with EGFR-mutant lung cancers whose tumours have become resistant to treatment.

“At the moment, patients with EGFR-mutant lung cancers are given targeted treatments that are very effective for the first few years,” explains study leader Professor Julian Downward, who has labs at the Crick and the ICR. “These drugs are improving, but unfortunately after a couple of years the cancer usually becomes resistant and starts to grow and spread again. The second line of treatment is currently conventional chemotherapy, which is not targeted and has substantial side-effects.

“Our new study suggests that it would be worth investigating whether p110α inhibitors could be used as a second-line therapy. As our research is at such an early stage, more research in mice and patient cells would be needed before even considering clinical trials, but it opens up a promising avenue of investigation.”

For this research, the team targeted a specific interaction between the RAS protein and p110α. The RAS gene is mutated in around one in five cancers, causing uncontrolled growth, and is a key focus of Julian’s research. When they blocked this interaction in genetically modified mice with EGFR mutations, their tumours shrank significantly.

Before the intervention, the tumours filled around two thirds of the space inside the lung. When the interaction between RAS and p110α was genetically blocked, this shrank significantly to about a tenth of the space inside the lung. The intervention also had very few side-effects.

“As we wanted to pinpoint the specific interaction responsible, we used a genetic technique that would not be practical in a patient treatment,” says Julian. “We’re looking to develop ways to do this with drugs, as blocking this specific pathway would significantly reduce side-effects, but this work is many years from the clinic. In the medium-term, investigating existing drugs that inhibit p110α will be the next step. While these have side-effects, including temporary diabetes-like symptoms during treatment, they are still less toxic than chemotherapy.”

###

Media Contact
Harry Dayantis
[email protected]
44-203-796-5252

Tags: Breast CancercancerMedicine/HealthPharmaceutical Science
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

Not All Low-Grade Prostate Cancers Pose Low Risk, Study Finds

Not All Low-Grade Prostate Cancers Pose Low Risk, Study Finds

July 31, 2025
blank

Immunoglobulin Replacement Therapy Fails to Reduce Serious Infections in CLL Patients, Study Finds

July 31, 2025

Machine Learning Model Identifies Nasopharyngeal Cancer Patients Likely to Respond to Radiation Therapy

July 31, 2025

“’One and Done’: Single Birth Shot Could Protect Children from HIV for Years, Study Reveals”

July 31, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Blind to the Burn

    Overlooked Dangers: Debunking Common Myths About Skin Cancer Risk in the U.S.

    60 shares
    Share 24 Tweet 15
  • Dr. Miriam Merad Honored with French Knighthood for Groundbreaking Contributions to Science and Medicine

    46 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 12
  • Study Reveals Beta-HPV Directly Causes Skin Cancer in Immunocompromised Individuals

    37 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 9
  • Engineered Cellular Communication Enhances CAR-T Therapy Effectiveness Against Glioblastoma

    35 shares
    Share 14 Tweet 9

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

How the MISSION Act is Transforming Quality and Outcomes of Major Cardiovascular Procedures in Veterans

Leopard Seals Sing: Under-Ice Sounds Flow Like Nursery Rhymes

Mouse Lemur Cell Atlas Unlocks Primate Insights

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.