The targeted DRUGS that have changed the treatment of ovarian and breast cancer with the “Jolie” mutations (of the BRCA 1 and 2 genes) could also be used in the future against osteosarcoma, the most common and aggressive bone cancer that affects especially children and young adults. In fact, according to a study published in Nature Communications a rather common gene alteration in osteosarcomas, the RB1 gene mutation, could make this disease sensitive to PARP inhibitors. And since these drugs are already licensed in other cancers, patients with osteosarcoma with RB1 mutations could quickly benefit from these treatments, as pointed out by Sibylle Mittnacht of the UCL Cancer Institute and lead author of the research, which was also conducted in Italy, at the Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute of Bologna. The study was supported by Children with Cancer UK, Cancer Research UK and the AIRC Foundation for Cancer Research.
Laura Boldrini and the ‘lesson’ of sarcoma: “I learned to listen to my body”
by Irma D’Aria
The RB1 gene
RB1 is a tumor suppressor gene – that is, a gene that protects cells from the accumulation of potentially cancerous mutations – located on chromosome 13. RB1 mutations are found in about half of osteosarcomas and have been linked to a poor prognosis and a high risk of metastasize. Well, researchers have shown that osteosarcoma cells with the mutation in this gene are killed by PARP inhibitors very quickly, and that these drugs act on osteosarcoma cells even better than they do when used against breast cancer cells. or BRCA positive ovaries. From cells to humans, this time the step could be fast.
Oncology: studies and new drugs. Here are the news expected for 2022
by Tiziana Moriconi
Research
The research we are talking about, in fact, was not conducted on humans, but on tumor cells. In short, it is basic research, for which a specific clinical application is not expected in the immediate future. “But we have strong indications that the observed sensitivity to PARP inhibitors is reproducible even in clinical conditions”, explains Katia Scotlandi, head of the experimental oncology laboratory of the Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute and co-author of the study: “The research, in fact, was carried out in the laboratory under conditions that faithfully reproduce the characteristics of the original tumors and with recently removed tumor cells. It is therefore highly unlikely that the data are due to changes related to the long-term growth of cancer cells under artificial conditions. The results open up the possibility of a new therapy for a tumor for which innovative treatments are indispensable and the next step will be to verify the real efficacy of these therapeutic agents in clinical trials “. And it’s not just this that makes the results interesting: other types of cancer in which the RB1 mutation is common may also respond to PARP inhibitors, including small cell lung cancers and glioblastoma, according to the authors. In short, the use of the RB1 mutation as a marker of sensitivity to these drugs could open up their use in a much wider range of cancers.
Pediatric orthopedics: the 3D printer comes to the aid of the surgeon
by Irma D’Aria
What is osteosarcoma
Osteosarcoma is a tumor that has a tendency to grow rapidly and metastasize. It derives from the transformation of osteoblasts, that is, cells specialized in the production of bone tissue, and almost always originates in the long bones of the legs and arms. It is a rare tumor, in Italy there are about 100-110 cases per year (20-25% of all bone cancers), and is more common in the pediatric range and among young adults: it affects boys and girls equally but, after puberty, more males than females (with about 10 cases per million versus 1.5 cases per million). Thanks to integrated treatments (chemo-radiotherapy and surgery), in recent years there has been a significant increase in 5-year survival, which has gone from about 20% a couple of decades ago to 60% and more today. Furthermore, thanks to neoadjuvant chemotherapy, ie administered before surgery to reduce the tumor mass, limb amputation is now only practiced in 5% of cases.
A new therapy for patients with Brca mutations
Immagine: Osteosarcoma, National Cancer Institute on Unsplash
.