MEK Inhibitor News and Research

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Non-traditional gene fusions in luminal breast cancer: A new target for therapy

A new editorial paper was published in Oncotarget's Volume 14 on June 12, 2023, entitled, "Are cis-spliced fusion proteins pathological in more aggressive luminal breast cancer?"

21 Aug 2023

New precision medicine trial shows promise for treating rare brain tumors

Papillary craniopharyngiomas (PCPs) are a rare type of brain tumor that cause substantial morbidity for patients.

13 Jul 2023

Promising new combination of drugs identified to treat juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia

Indiana University School of Medicine researchers have identified a promising new combination of drugs to treat juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), a rare form of blood cancer that affects children.

5 Apr 2023

Signal transduction via the EGFR pathway likely to be involved in lenvatinib resistance

The multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor (MKI), lenvatinib, is widely used to treat advanced and metastatic thyroid cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms by which thyroid cancer cells become resistant to lenvatinib remain poorly understood. In this study, we demonstrated, for the first time, that activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mediated signaling pathway is involved in lenvatinib resistance in thyroid cancer cells.

14 Sep 2022

Androgen receptor signaling affects response to targeted therapy in people with melanoma

Androgen receptor (AR) signaling affects response to BRAF/MEK inhibitor therapy in both males and females with melanoma, researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center showed in a study published today in Nature.

15 Jun 2022

Tumor cells’ 'ferroaddiction' can be exploited to deliver powerful anticancer drugs

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, have discovered that cells carrying the most common mutation found in human cancer accumulate large amounts of ferrous iron and that this "ferroaddiction" can be exploited to specifically deliver powerful anticancer drugs without harming normal, healthy cells.

11 Mar 2022

Patient-derived circulating tumor cells could be used to identify drug targets for leptomeningeal disease

Leptomeningeal disease is a rare complication of several different types of cancer, including melanoma. It occurs when tumor cells migrate to the cerebrospinal fluid and the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal column known as the meninges.

8 Mar 2022

Integrin/TGF-β1 inhibitors highly effective in attenuating COVID-19 severity

New study results suggest that integrin inhibitors have the potential to both prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2, including the Delta and Omicron variants, and to decrease TGF-β levels, resulting in a decrease in COVID-19 severity, hospitalization, and death, especially in vulnerable and unvaccinated populations.

5 Jan 2022

Combination of two targeted drugs shows "clinically meaningful" activity in some malignant brain tumors

A combination of two targeted cancer drugs showed unprecedented, "clinically meaningful" activity in patients with highly malignant brain tumors that carried a rare genetic mutation, according to a clinical trial report by investigators from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

25 Nov 2021

Study shows how whole genome sequencing could benefit children with cancer

Unravelling the entire genetic code for each child who has been diagnosed with cancer can give a more accurate diagnosis or reveal new treatment options, according to research presented at the NCRI Festival. These are the results of a pilot study of the process known as whole genome sequencing.

8 Nov 2021

New study aims to improve anti-cancer drug response predictions across cancer types

The goal of "precision oncology" is to be able to tailor treatments to each individual patient based on their cancer's unique molecular fingerprints.

26 Feb 2021

Combining anti-tumor antibodies with standard-of-care improves therapeutic outcomes in cancer

The cover for issue 2 of Oncotarget features Figure 4, "Combination therapy TA99/ICB reduced the lung tumor burden in the B16 model of metastases," published in "Improved therapeutic efficacy of unmodified anti-tumor antibodies by immune checkpoint blockade and kinase targeted therapy in mouse models of melanoma" by Pérez-Lorenzo, et al. which reported that here, the authors showed that removing immune suppression and enhancing stimulatory signals increased the anti-tumor activity of unmodified TA99 antibodies with a significant reduction of growth of solid tumors and lung metastases in mouse models of melanoma.

25 Jan 2021

New drug reduces tumor volume and pain in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1

Based on preclinical studies of an investigational drug to treat peripheral nerve tumors, researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) as part of the Neurofibromatosis Clinical Trials Consortium have shown that the drug, cabozantinib, reduces tumor volume and pain in patients with the genetic disorder neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1).

15 Jan 2021

Study: Specific class of drugs can be repurposed to treat genetic diseases

Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago have published a study showing a promising approach to using drug repurposing to treat genetic diseases.

17 Dec 2020

MFCR awards new grants to support an emerging approach to cancer therapeutics

The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research has awarded five new grants in support of an important, emerging approach to cancer therapeutics.

17 Dec 2020

New combination therapy has potential to treat aggressive cancers with common mutations

Scientists have long known that therapies that target the cancer-driving MAPK pathway are only effective in a handful of cancers with specific mutations in a cancer gene called BRAF, and these cancers that initially respond to the therapy often end up developing resistance to the treatment, resulting in relapse for many patients.

14 Dec 2020

Severe lymphatic disorder reversed through genetic sequencing and targeted treatment

Through genetic sequencing and targeted treatment, researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have resolved a severe lymphatic disorder in a young woman with kaposiform lymphangiomatosis (KLA), a complex and rare disorder that causes lymphatic vessels around the heart and lung to leak fluid, causing breathing difficulties, infections, and often death.

5 Oct 2020

Scientists identify key driver in BRAF inhibitor resistant melanoma

Targeted therapy with BRAF-MEK inhibitors is an effective treatment for patients with advanced melanoma that cannot be surgically removed or has spread to other areas of the body.

2 Sep 2020

First comparative data of encorafenib and paradox breaker inhibitors in BRAF mutant CRC

Oncotarget Volume 11, Issue 34 features Figure 1, "BRAF inhibitor-induced changes in cell viability," by Pickles, et al which reported that the BEACON CRC trial demonstrated a survival advantage over chemotherapy for a combination of targeted agents comprising the potent BRAF inhibitor encorafenib together with cetuximab and binimetinib.

26 Aug 2020

Combination therapy effective for patients with cholangiocarcinoma marked by BRAF mutations

In a Phase II trial led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the combination of dabrafenib, a BRAF inhibitor, and trametinib, a MEK inhibitor, achieved a 51% overall response rate (ORR) in patients with cholangiocarcinoma marked by the BRAF V600E mutation.

18 Aug 2020