New Synthetic Drug Gives Hope to Mesothelioma Patients

A synthetic version of a molecule found in the egg cells of the Northern leopard frog may provide the world with the first drug treatment for various malignant tumors.

Scientists from the United States and the United Kingdom have discovered that the molecule amphinase can recognize a sugary coating found in tumor cells by deactivating the RNA in the cell, causing the tumor to die.

In new studies published by the Journal of Molecular Biology, scientists say the drug could also treat many forms of cancer, such as mesothelioma and various lung ailments.

The Northern leopard frog is a species of leopard frog that is native to certain regions of the United States and Canada. These frogs have offered science a vast amount of information regarding the basic properties of neurons and cancer therapies since the 1950s.

Amphinase is the second anti-tumor drug to be isolated by Alfacell Corporation from the Northern leopard frog. The other drug, ONCONASE (R) (ranpirnase) is currently in a late-stage clinical trial as a potential treatment for malignant mesothelioma.

Accounting for nearly three percent of all cancer diagnoses in the United States, mesothelioma is a highly aggressive cancer that is caused by asbestos exposure. Exposure occurs when asbestos fibers become airborne and are inhaled and attach themselves to the lining of the lungs. Individuals who become sick from asbestos are those who are exposed on a day-to-day basis, typically in a job where they work directly with the material.

Unfortunately, the majority of mesothelioma treatment options have been unsuccessful at curing the disease. Mesothelioma is heralded as one of the most difficult forms of cancer for physicians to diagnose because so many of its symptoms resemble other other less serious diseases.

Currently, Amphinase has shown the best results in treating brain tumors, for which surgery and chemotherapy are the only current treatments.

One of the drug’s key researchers, Professor Ravi Acharya of the Department of Biology and Biochemistry for the University of Bath believes the drug represents a brand new paradigm of anti-cancer prevention and treatments.

Professor Acharya claims that Amphinase is “like Mother Nature’s very own magic bullet for recognizing and destroying cancer cells. It is highly specific in destroying tumor cells and offers great hope as a therapeutic treatment of the future.”

Although the drug has received a tremendous amount of positive results, it is still in the early stages of development and could take a few years to get the approval from the Federal Drug Administration.

For more information on mesothelioma treatment, please visit the Mesothelioma Cancer Center.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 8th, 2009 at 3:45 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Mesothelioma, Mesothelioma Treatment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.