New Drug May Help Fight Cancer

While doctors and scientists have made some exciting medical advances over the last couple of decades, we still struggle to understand and control one of the deadliest diseases out there - cancer. Cancer develops in various ways, sometimes showing obvious symptoms and sometimes appearing with no warning at all. The development of mesothelioma, for example, has been directly linked to exposure to dangerous asbestos fibers. Once inhaled, these fibers begin to scar the healthy tissue inside, causing a build up of scar-tissue and other problems over time. Although the outward symptoms take decades to show, the cancer growing inside of the body is not nearly as slow.

The development of cancer involves the rapid and uncontrolled growth of cancer cells within the body. Over time, these cells may develop into cancerous growths known as tumors, creating an even greater threat to the health of the body. Doctors and scientists alike have been searching for a cure for this deadly disease for many years and have only been able to treat the symptoms, rather than the cancer itself. Recent studies have shown that there may be a drug in development that has the ability to fight the cancer cells directly.

While researching drugs to help prevent radiation damage from possible nuclear warfare, scientists have created a drug that not only helps those exposed to radiation, but also those suffering from the damaging effects of cancer cells. Andrei Gudkov, a scientist at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, has been working on the newest drug to fight cancer, currently known as CBLB502. After working for years to develop a drug to help destroy cancer, Gudkov had the idea to use cancer's own tactics to fight against it.

When our cells are exposed to damaging radiation, they commit cellular suicide, also known as apoptosis. Cancer cells, however, block this process and allow dangerous tumors to form as unhealthy cells multiple uncontrollably. Gudkov and a team of scientists use the drug, CBLB502, to block apoptosis in the same manner as cancer, however, they block the suicide of healthy cells. This causes healthy cells to regenerate rather than deadly cancerous cells that develop from radiation and other forms of exposure to cancer-causing materials.

This new drug remains in development for the moment, however, the scientists at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute are optimistic that the drug will allow us to better fight the deadly disease of cancer in the future.