Research in mice has uncovered a new drug that halts the growth of triple-negative breast cancer.
This type of breast cancer is an aggressive form that lacks three common receptors in cells that are usually the targets for most therapies.
Scientists at the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia developed a drug initially aimed at leukaemia, called CDDD11-8, that showed promising results in inhibiting tumour growth, and causing cell death, while also improving survival in immunodeficient mice.
The research also involved the use of organoids and breath cancer tissue from patients.
Theresa Hickey, at Adelaide, said: “It is still early days but based on this initial evidence, we believe inhibiting this protein could lead to a treatment for triple-negative breast cancer and this new drug should be developed further.”