Bristol Meyers Squibb drug could reduce cancer weight loss

A drug previously developed to help fight breast cancer has been found to reduce weight loss in patients of other cancers.

Bristol-Meyers Squibb’s drug megestrol acetate, which is a synthetic replacement for the female hormone progesterone, was found to produce weight gain as a side effect in breast cancer sufferers. Earlier studies had discovered the drug’s usefulness in increasing appetite amongst HIV patients.

Researchers gave the drug to patients who were taking radiation therapy for cancers of the lung, the head or the neck – who often suffer from severe weight loss due to pain in swallowing or nausea. Patients who took the drug were found to experience no significant drop in weight during the period.

“The drug clearly reduced weight loss and improved quality of life in study patients,” said Michael Farmer, who presented the findings in October. He said that weight loss maintained a relationship “with decreased overall survival, decreased quality of life and decreased response to treatment”.

But he added: “While we know that weight loss is associated with a poorer outcome, we don’t know for certain that preventing weight loss will improve survival. This issue has not been well studied and warrants more attention.”

The research was co-ordinated by the Comprehensive Cancer Center of Wake Forest University Research Base, a network of 93 cancer centres across the US.

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