New Therapy Holds potential in treating Leukemia

Dopamine receptor-inhibiting drug thioridazine could serve as a new therapy for patients, and their focus on adult AML has revealed encouraging results.

AML is a particularly deadly cancer that starts with a DNA mutation in the blood stem cells of the bone marrow that produce too many infection-fighting white blood cells. According to the Canadian Cancer Society about 21% of people diagnosed with AML will survive at least five years.

"We have successfully understood the mechanism by which the drug benefited patients, and we are using this information to develop a new, more tolerable formulation of the drug that is likely to work in some of the patients," said senior author of the paper Mick Bhatia, a professor of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster. He also holds the Canada Research Chair in Human Stem Cell Biology.

‘Thioridazine could serve a new therapy for leukemia patients, the deadly cancer that starts with a DNA mutation.’
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The phase one study of 13 patients is being featured on the cover of the journal Cell Reports Medicine.

Bhatia said the team has continued to carefully analyze and further refine their therapeutic approach and results of the initial trial.

"Together, these achievements highlight the importance of the new paradigm of that issues impacting patients can be taken to the lab bench and solutions back to patients. These "bed to bench, and back to bed" approaches and partnerships to advance novel therapeutics Canadians suffering from cancer," he added.

Source: Eurekalert

Leukemia

Encyclopedia section of medindia gives general information about Leukemia

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the cancer of white blood cells characterized by excess lymphoblasts. It is the most common of all childhood cancers and can be fatal in weeks if left untreated.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Acute myeloid Leukemia, more popularly known by its abbreviated form AML, is a fast- evolving leukemia that affects both children and adults alike

Bone Marrow Transplantation

Preferred Term is Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In this stem cell from bone marrow are injected into a recipient after treating them with growth factor.

Chronic Myeloid Leukemia

Chronic myeloid Leukemia is one of the most common types of blood cancer. It is characterized by excess of WBC stem cells in the bone marrow.

Hairy Cell Leukemia

Hairy cell leukemia (HCL) is a type of leukemia where there are increased numbers of abnormal B-lymphocytes, a type of white blood cells.

Multiple Myeloma

Multiple Myeloma caught public attention when model turned actress Lisa Ray, who worked in Deepa Mehta’s ‘Water’ , declared that she had the incurable Multiple Myeloma.