A new target for combination treatment of neuroblastoma – Neuroblastoma UK

Neuroblastoma UK shared on LinkedIn:

“New research, partly funded by Neuroblastoma UK, published by Professor Suzanne Turner and led by Perla Pucci in her group at the University of Cambridge Department of Pathology and CRUK Cambridge Centre Paediatric Cancer Programme, has suggested a new target for combination treatment of neuroblastoma and other cancers alongside ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (ALK TKI).

Resistance to ALK TKI is a challenge and so additional targets for treatments that can be used in combination with ALK TKI are urgently needed.

Perla Pucci, a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Turner group and lead author on the paper said:

‘Several different gene pathways and existing drugs were examined, but our experiments culminated in the investigation of lonafarnib. Results showed that lonafarnib acts alongside ALK inhibitors in the treatment of neuroblastoma, particularly in cells where MYCN is not amplified. In treatment terms, for patients with tumours where MYCN is amplified, other drugs could also be used to target this.’

Find out more about this exciting potential treatment options here.”

Source: Neuroblastoma UK/LinkedIn