"Platinum-based drugs are used in nearly 50% of all chemotherapeutic
regimens, exert their activity by damaging DNA and cannot select between
cancerous and non-cancerous cells, leading to a wide-range of
side-effects from renal failure to neurotoxicity, ototoxicity, nausea
and vomiting.
"In contrast, the new iridium-based drug is specifically designed not
to attack DNA, but to have a novel mechanism of action, meaning that it
could not only dramatically slow down and halt cancer growth, but also
significantly reduce the side effects suffered by patients" argues
Professor Sadler.
This research could also lead to substantial improvements in cancer
survival rates. "Current statistics indicate that one in every three
people will develop some kind of cancer during their life time, moreover
approximately one woman dies of ovarian cancer every two hours in the
UK according to Cancer Research UK .It is clear that a new generation of
drugs is necessary to save more lives and our research points to a
highly effective way of defeating cancerous cells" said Dr
Romero-Canelon.
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