Breakthrough for difficult-to-treat cancer as scientists hail ‘truly amazing’ new drug
Scientists have welcomed the “truly wonderful development” of a new drug for a difficult-to-treat and aggressive form of cancer.
Researchers led by a team from Queen Mary University of London said their new treatment ‘quadrupled’ three-year survival and increased average survival by 1.6 months.
Academics say the new drug, which works by cutting off the tumor’s food supply, is the first of its kind for mesothelioma in two decades.
Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that arises in the mucous membrane that covers the surface of some organs of the body, mainly the lining of the lungs. Usually there is exposure to asbestos.
In the new study, led by Professor Peter Szlosarek from Queen Mary, all patients received chemotherapy every three weeks for up to six cycles. Half also received injections of the new drug ADI-PEG20 (pegargiminase), while the other half received a placebo – also known as a dummy drug – for two years.
Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that arises in the mucous membrane that covers the surface of some organs of the body, mainly the lining of the lungs. Usually there is exposure to asbestos. In the photo: asbestos chrysotile fibers
Figures from Cancer Research UK show that there are around 2,700 new cases of mesothelioma in the UK every year.
And there are almost 2,400 deaths every year; only 2 percent of people are expected to survive ten years after their diagnosis.
In the new study, led by Professor Peter Szlosarek from Queen Mary, all patients received chemotherapy every three weeks for up to six cycles.
Half also received injections of the new drug ADI-PEG20 (pegargiminase), while the other half received a placebo for two years.
About 249 patients with pleural mesothelioma β where the disease affects the lining of the lungs β were included in the final analysis. They had an average age of 70 years.
The ATOMIC-meso study, sponsored by Polaris Pharmaceuticals, was conducted at 43 centers in five countries between 2017 and 2021.
Patients involved in the study were followed for a minimum of one year.
Those who received pegargiminase and chemotherapy survived an average of 9.3 months, compared to 7.7 months for those who received the placebo and chemotherapy, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Oncology.
The researchers said the average ‘progression-free survival’ was 6.2 months with pegargiminase chemotherapy, compared with 5.6 months in patients who received the placebo and chemotherapy.
βIn this pivotal, randomized, placebo-controlled phase 3 study in 249 patients with pleural mesothelioma, pegargiminase chemotherapy significantly increased median overall survival by 1.6 months and quadrupled survival at 36 months compared with placebo chemotherapy,β the authors wrote. .
‘Pegargiminase-based chemotherapy was well tolerated and there were no new safety signals.’
Researchers said this is the first successful combination of chemotherapy with a drug that targets cancer metabolism developed for the disease in two decades.
It comes after two decades of work by Professor Szlosarek following his original discovery that mesothelioma cells lack a protein called ASS1, which allows cells to produce the amino acid arginine.
The new medicine was developed using this knowledge. ADI-PEG20 works by depleting arginine levels in the bloodstream. For tumor cells that cannot produce their arginine due to a missing enzyme, this means their growth is stunted.
Professor Szlosarek said: ‘It’s really great to see that research into arginine starvation of cancer cells is paying off.
‘This discovery is something I have been working on from the earliest stages in the laboratory, with a new treatment, ADI-PEG20, now improving the lives of patients affected by mesothelioma.’
Dr. Tayyaba Jiwani, science engagement manager at Cancer Research UK, which funded the early stages of the study, said: ‘This study demonstrates the power of discovery research, allowing us to dig deep into the biology of mesothelioma to uncover vulnerabilities that we can discover now. target with ADI-PEG20.’
Liz Darlison, chief executive of the charity Mesothelioma UK, added: ‘The UK mesothelioma community, including doctors, nurses, patients and families living with mesothelioma, is extremely proud of ATOMiC.
‘It provides another much-needed treatment option and, above all, hope for people with mesothelioma.
‘We look forward to seeing this treatment become available as a standard option for all patients in the future. Congratulations to everyone involved and thanks to everyone who took part.’