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June 2023 | George M. Pikler, M.D., Ph.D., FACP

Drug Repurposing for Cancer Therapy

The development of new anti-cancer drugs is a multistep process that is time-and money-consuming. Launch of a new drug takes 8-12 years and huge investments. Success rate in oncology therapeutics is also low due to toxicities at the pre-clinical and clinical trials that commonly fail in the initial phases. Many oncological drugs get rejected at very promising stage showing adverse reactions on healthy cells.

To overcome these issues, researchers have focused on an alternative strategy, drug repurposing, (1) that incorporates repurposing drugs approved for clinical indications other than cancer that have shown promising anti-cancer activities. Contrary to the de novo drug development, drug repurposing has numerous advantages that include higher efficiency, decreased toxicity, overcoming of drug resistance, lower time and financial expenditure, and reduced risk of failure. This approach is effective primarily when the FDA-approved agent targets similar pathways found in cancer.

Repurposed anti-cancer drugs have also shown promising results. In a recent study, (2) a repurposed leukemia drug, imatinib, could prevent dormant breast cancer cells that have spread to the lungs from waking up. These cancer cells can lie dormant for years or even decades. Researchers found that platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-C protein levels increased as lung tissue became aged or damaged, waking up the sleeping cancer cells and causing a recurrence. Inhibiting this protein using imatinib reversed the tumor activity in mice with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer, which is the most common type of breast cancer in women.

At N1X10, detailed research of all therapeutic options, including the use of repurposed drugs is discussed with our clients as an option they may consider in the treatment of their individual malignancy.

(1) Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Apr; 23 (8): 4280
(2) Nature Cancer 2023; 4: 468-484
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Erica

Erica Cross, PA

PA

Erica is a board certified Physician Assistant. She obtained her Master’s degree in Physician Assistant studies from Our Lady of the Lake College in Baton Rouge, LA. She began practicing in 2011 and has worked clinically in Orthopedics and Dermatology. The majority of her career has been spent in a Dermatology practice where she assisted in Mohs surgery, treating various types of skin cancer. She also teaches in the medical simulation department at the University of South Alabama and enjoys every aspect of medical education.