USC researchers identify genetic markers that predict efficacy of novel c...( Chicago Ill.--Researchers at the Uni...),Health

Chicago, Ill.--Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) and USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified genetic markers in cancer cells that predicted the benefit of a novel cancer drug prior to chemotherapy.

Researchers looked at the effect of the drug PTK/ZK--a novel therapy designed to inhibit the development of cancer blood vessels--in combination with chemotherapy. The findings suggest that patients with tumors with a specific gene expression profile may benefit most from the incorporation of this drug into their treatment.

The results of the study will be presented as an oral presentation Saturday, May 31, at the 2008 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), held at McCormick Place in Chicago.

"Our research shows that tumor blood vessel formation is critical for tumor growth and that the mechanisms in place controlling tumor blood vessel development are complex," says Peter M. Wilson, senior post-doctoral research fellow at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and lead author of the study. "When we understand how drugs like PTK/ZK work, we can develop treatment strategies to maximize their impact by identifying patients who will benefit most from their use."

The drug regulates angiogenesis, a process of blood vessel formation that provides nutrients and oxygen to cancerous growths, says Wilson. As tumor cells grow, they increase the levels of a key protein called Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1a (HIF1a) in order to deal with the oxygen depletion. HIF1a results in the tumor cell producing a number of other proteins that assist in promoting blood vessel growth. One of the most important of these is the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) that is released by the tumor and binds to receptors on blood vessels, promoting their growth toward the tumor.

Disrupting the growth of new blood vessels toward a growing tumor will effectively slow tumor growth and sp
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