Researchers are creating a ‘designer’ protein that could be effective at treating prostate cancer when other therapies fail.
In laboratory tests, the protein hindered the growth of cancer cells even in conditions where conventional therapies are ineffective. The researchers, from Imperial College London and the University of Essex, hope to develop the protein into a therapy that could be trialled in patients within five years.
Prostate cancers are only able to grow when they are exposed to male hormones such as testosterone. These hormones bring about their effects by binding to specific receptors. Many existing therapies target these receptors, yet after an average of two years the cancer becomes resistant to treatment. In this phase, hormones continue to drive the growth of cancer cells. In this new study, the researchers have designed a new protein which blocks the hormone receptors and consequently stops prostate cancer cells from growing in the laboratory.
The findings are published in the journal Oncotarget.
