Welcome back, everyone. We hope the weekend was pleasant and relaxing. Now, of course, the routine has returned, although there is a holiday for some here in the states. With that in mind, we will brew our mandatory cup of stimulation and help you get caught up as the day unfolds, whatever your plans may be. Have a good one and stay in touch...
Lilly Drops Alimta For Head And Neck Cancer After Study Fails (Reuters)
Novartis Kidney Drug Failed To Slow Form Of Pancreatic Cancer (Bloomberg News)
Merck KGgA To Ask EU To Reconsider MS Pill (Reuters)
AstraZeneca's Osteoarthritis Drug Wins EU Backing (Associated Press)
Erbitux Fails In Colon Cancer Study (Indianapolis Business Journal)
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When a tumor has certain KRAS mutations, the partially effective colon cancer drug Erbitux, is very unlikely to work. So we have KRAS mutation testing to predict for Erbitux in colon cancer. Of course, this leaves out a dozen other drugs and a myriad of drug combinations, which may often be even more effective in this disease.
New technologies for measuring the expression (biological activity) of literally hundreds to thousands of genes as part of a single test. There are two main technologies involved: RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) and DNA microarray.
What research scientists in universities and cancer centers have been doing for the past ten years is to try and figure out a way to use this technology to look for patterns of gene expression which correlate with and predict for the activity of anticancer drugs.
However, genes do not operate alone within the cell but in an intricate network of interactions.
Since the new millenium there has been the increasing acceptance of the concept that cancer is a very heterogenous disease and that it would be a good thing to try and "individualize' treatment. The cell is a system, an integrated, intereacting network of genes, proteins and other cellular constituents that produce functions.
One needs to analyze the systems' response to drug treatments, not just one or a few targets (pathways/mechanisms).