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One of the major advances in cancer research over the past decade has been the realization that tumor growth is dependent on the tumor's ability to recruit blood vessels from the neighboring tissue. Angiogenesis, the process by which new blood vessels are formed, is a hallmark capability of cancer, critical for the development of all
solid tumors. This property is the basis for anti-angiogenic therapy, a promising novel strategy for treatment of cancer.
Whereas conventional chemotherapy directly targets the rapidly dividing tumor cells, anti-angiogenic therapy is designed to starve the tumor by cutting-off its blood supply. Targeting the tumor's growing vasculature offers several important advantages:
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Angiogenesis does not normally occur in healthy tissues, therefore the anti-angiogenic therapy selectively targets the tumor bed, with minimal side effects. |
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Anti-angiogenic therapy is directed against a variety of solid tumors regardless of their tissue of origin. |
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Anti-angiogenic therapy targets endothelial cells , which, as opposed to cancer cells, are genetically stable. This should significantly reduce the chances of developing drug resistance. |
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Sustained anti-angiogenic therapy may help stop tumor growth, preventing complications and metastasis of the initial disease. Assuming that the vasculature feeding the tumor continuously renews itself, effective chronic anti-angiogenic therapy may even cause a regression of established tumors. |
Cancer-related angiogenesis is a complex and robust process that involves multiple steps. This is probably the reason why attempts to block the process using a single agent that attacks a single junction in the pathway have so far produced disappointing results. On the other hand, the prototypic anti-angiogenic therapy we have developed is based on the tenet that angiogenesis can be better disrupted by multi-faceted intervention.
Our product is a combination of four agents that target different, non-overlapping aspects of the angiogenic process.
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All of these agents are known and previously FDA approved drugs. |
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All of the drugs are orally bioavailable , and therefore allow convenient administration of the therapy by drinking in the patient's home setting. |
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The therapy cycle and formulation we constructed is a carefully timed and balanced patient-friendly treatment regimen that maximizes the synergistic effect of these four agents. |
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Preclinical studies studies in rodents and dogs have demonstrated a clear anti-cancer effect of our novel therapy, including stabilization and/or reduction in tumor volume, with no significant side effects. |
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| These results are now replicated in clinical testing, and chronic treatment with our anti-angiogenic cocktail is offering cancer patients a chance to conduct an effective battle against their disease without disrupting their normal daily lives in the process. Such a Phase I/II clinical trial is presently in progress. |
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