Common blood pressure drug could make cancer therapy far more powerful
Researchers at Dartmouth Cancer Center found that the blood pressure medication telmisartan enhances the effectiveness of the cancer drug olaparib. The combination appears to trigger immune responses that make tumors more susceptible to treatment, even in patients who typically do not respond to PARP inhibitors.
Why it matters
Repurposing existing, inexpensive drugs to improve cancer therapy could significantly increase treatment success rates and accessibility.
A medication that has long been used to treat high blood pressure could also help make an important class of cancer drugs much more effective, according to new research from Dartmouth Cancer Center (DCC). The study found that the FDA approved drug telmisartan significantly boosted the cancer killing activity of the targeted therapy olaparib, raising the possibility that more patients could benefit from the treatment. The findings were published in The Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer .
"This study shows that a common, safe, tolerable, convenient, and inexpensive drug may significantly improve how well an important class of cancer therapies works," said Tyler J. Curiel, MD, MPH, FACP, the study's senior and lead author.
Making PARP Inhibitors Work for More Patients
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