Researchers at Umeå University and collaborating institutions have developed an experimental cancer drug that may be able to slow tumor growth and prevent aggressive prostate cancer from spreading. Their findings were published in the scientific journal Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy.
“The new drug has been developed to prevent metastasis, and we are very pleased and proud that we have been able to identify the mechanisms that drive cancer cell growth, invasiveness, and metastatic spread,” says Maréne Landström, Professor of Pathology at the Department of Medical Biosciences, Umeå University, who led the study.
Targeting Aggressive Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is among the most frequently diagnosed cancers in men. Many prostate tumors grow slowly and never become life threatening. In some patients, however, the disease becomes aggressive and spreads beyond the prostate, most often to the lymph nodes and bones.
To address this dangerous form of the disease, the research team led by Landström created a fully human antibody. Because the antibody is made entirely from human proteins, it has properties that make it suitable for development as a therapeutic drug.
In preclinical studies, the antibody stopped both tumor growth and metastatic spread in an aggressive form of prostate cancer. It works through a newly identified mechanism, which has led the researchers to suggest that it may also carry a lower risk of side effects.
A Step Toward a New Treatment
The findings show that the antibody performed as the researchers intended. This represents an important milestone in the long process of turning the experimental treatment into a drug that could eventually be used by patients.
“This is a promising step forward, but several important stages remain before the treatment can benefit patients. We still need to conduct additional safety studies, and the treatment must be approved by regulatory authorities in Europe or the United States,” says Maréne Landström.
The broader goal of the project is to improve survival prospects and quality of life for men with advanced prostate cancer. The work has continued for several years, and Landström says its progress reflects the combined efforts of many researchers, organizations, and funding partners.
Collaboration Behind the Antibody
Drug development specialists at the SciLifeLab Drug Discovery and Development Platform played an important role in the project. Their expertise contributed to the creation of the antibody used in the study.
The Umeå Biotech Incubator at Umeå University also supported the research. Funding from MetaCurUm Biotech AB, a biotechnology company based in Umeå, was essential for developing and testing the treatment.
Testing the Drug Against Other Tumors
The researchers now plan to examine whether the same treatment strategy could work against other solid tumors.
“The next step is to investigate whether this treatment can also be used against other types of solid tumors. We hope that our work will ultimately contribute to the development of a new cancer drug that can benefit patients,” says Maréne Landström.
The study was funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation (KAW), the Erling Persson Foundation, the Kempe Foundations, the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Cancer Society, ALF funding, the Swedish Prostate Cancer Federation, the Cancer Research Foundation in Northern Sweden, and the Faculty of Medicine at Umeå University.