New cancer strategy could stop tumors before resistance takes hold
Researchers propose a new cancer treatment strategy that involves switching therapies while a tumor is still shrinking to prevent drug resistance. This 'kick it while it's down' approach aims to stop cancer cells from evolving mutations that allow them to survive initial treatments.
Why it matters
This evolutionary approach to oncology could significantly improve long-term survival rates by preemptively addressing the common problem of treatment relapse.
Smarter timing may be one of the keys to making cancer treatment more effective.
A new study suggests that doctors could improve cure rates by changing therapies before a tumor has a chance to recover. Rather than waiting for cancer to return after an initial treatment, the researchers propose switching to another therapy while the tumor is still shrinking.
The strategy is designed to address one of the biggest obstacles in cancer care: drug resistance.
Dr. Robert Noble, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Mathematics, City, St George's, University of London, led the study.
"Although tumors may at first shrink under therapy," he explains, "in many cases they eventually regrow. These relapses stem from a small number of cancer cells that have gained mutations making the cells resistant to the treatment."
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