- BTG945 drug significantly reduced tumours in seven out of 15 women
- Researchers will today unveil the preliminary findings at a Chicago conference
- Unlike most gruelling cancer therapies, there are very few side effects
Thousands of women with ovarian cancer could be helped by the most promising new drug in a decade, British scientists claim.
The first results from a landmark trial have found that the treatment dramatically shrank tumours in patients in the terminal stages of the illness.
These women had no other treatment options yet doctors say the drug extended their lives by six months or more.
Ovarian cancer is diagnosed in 7,400 women in the UK each year (picture posed by model)
And, unlike most gruelling cancer therapies, there are very few side effects. The drug does not cause hair loss, extreme tiredness or high risk of infection, meaning patients enjoy a better quality of life.
A team of British researchers will today unveil the preliminary findings from an ongoing medical trial at the world’s largest cancer conference in Chicago.
They will show that the drug, known as BTG945, significantly reduced tumours in seven out of 15 women.
It is very unusual for a cancer treatment to show such promise so early on in a trial. The team of doctors and scientists from the Institute of Cancer Research in London have described the results as ‘rare’ and ‘very promising’.
Ovarian cancer is diagnosed in 7,400 women in the UK each year and leads to 4,100 deaths. Survival rates are much lower than other types of cancer and only a third of patients live beyond ten years. The disease is often diagnosed late, when it has already spread to other organs.
Many women suffer vague symptoms and are often misdiagnosed as having irritable bowel syndrome or in some cases, starting the menopause.
Treatment shrank all of my tumours
Delighted: Cancer patient Marianne Heath
Marianne Heath has advanced ovarian cancer, which caused tumours to spread to her back and stomach.
Mrs Heath, 68, was diagnosed in 2011 and has had extensive surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy – which all failed to halt the disease.
But since starting treatment with the new drug in September, all of her tumours have significantly shrunk.
The grandmother was given the intravenous therapy at the Royal Marsden hospital in London. Doctors now say she is ‘stable’ and although a tumour in her back has begun to grow again, they are hoping to treat it with radiotherapy.
Mrs Heath, of Oxshott, Surrey, said: ‘I had no other treatment choices so felt this was my only option. I’m delighted. I had next to no side effects.
‘This has been the best (treatment) so far.
‘It gives me and my family a buzz when we are told my scans look better.
‘I just want to keep going so I can keep the tumours at a level where I can enjoy my life.’
The drug is given intravenously – as a drip – and patients have 12 doses every two weeks. It is able to penetrate tumours by disguising itself as folic acid – a naturally occurring vitamin that is particularly beneficial to pregnant women. Ovarian cancer tumours are particularly receptive to folic acid and the disguise enables the treatment to enter the cells and attack.
This means the surrounding healthy cells are left alone, which is why the treatment causes so few side effects.
Dr Udai Banerji, of the Institute of Cancer Research, said: ‘The results we have seen in this trial are very promising. It is rare to see such clear evidence of reproducible responses in these early stages of drug development. The beauty of this particular drug is that it is targeted to the cancer cell. This means there are fewer side effects, making it a kinder treatment for ovarian cancer patients.’
The researchers believe the drug can extend lives by more than six months if women are given the drug before the illness has progressed. They will now carry out trials involving many more women.