Medical researchers develop new approaches for aggressive blood cancers

Researchers are advancing new approaches to treating aggressive blood cancers, including multiple myeloma and acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

In a clinical trial involving the Institute of Cancer Research, University of Leeds, and Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, a patient with aggressive multiple myeloma survived eight years after being given a two-year prognosis. The treatment involved a personalized approach that adjusted therapy based on the specific molecular biology of the tumor, initially utilizing an intensive five-drug regimen before transitioning to maintenance therapy.

Separately, scientists from Case Western Reserve University and the University of Gothenburg have developed a method to combat AML by forcing cancer cells to exhaust their energy. By using a molecule named AcTor to disrupt the TSC2 protein, researchers prevented cancer cells from entering a defensive, energy-saving state. When combined with the existing drug ixazomib, this approach forced the cells to continue intensive activity until they died, a method that has shown success in human cell cultures and mouse models.