A cancer-fighting compound being tested in clinical trials for some types of leukemia could also have potential for treating the most common form of breast cancer, a team of Australian researchers found.
In preclinical models, researchers from Melbourne's Walter and Eliza Hall Institute found that BH3 mimetics--which neutralize the BCL-2 protein, inducing cell death--were effective at combating aggressive estrogen receptor-positive (ER-positive) breast cancers when combined with the breast cancer drug tamoxifen. About 70% of breast cancers are ER-positive.
The researchers tested a BH3-mimetic called ABT-199/GDC-0199, discovered by scientists at Abbott ($ABT) and now being developed by Genentech and AbbVie ($ABBV), and found that it improved the effectiveness of hormone therapy in preclinical breast cancer models by stopping or delaying the growth of tumors. Meanwhile, standard treatment without the compound had only a partial benefit.
High levels of BCL-2--the pro-survival protein that helps cancer cells grow and keep multiplying--are found in up to 85% of ER-positive breast cancers. The presence of this protein can shield cancer cells against chemotherapy, allowing tumor cells to live on.
The scientists hope their research, published in the July 8 issue of Cancer Cell, will lead to clinical trials of BH3-mimetics in ER-positive breast cancer patients in the next few years.
- read the study abstract
- and the press release