Potential anti-cancer application for cholesterol-lowering drug

A potential new breakthrough has been highlighted in the field of prostate cancer treatment, with researchers having possibly identified a novel new drug to tackle the illness.

The research team of Yayun Liang and Benford Mafuvadze from the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, alongside Johannes Aebi of Roche Pharmaceuticals, discovered that a new cholesterol-fighting molecule could deliver key benefits to cancer patients in the future.

It not only halts the progression of prostate cancer, but can also kill cancerous cells, as it reduces the production of cholesterol – a substance that these cells rely on to remain healthy.

Professor in tumor angiogenesis at the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center Salman Hyder said: "Often, cancer patients are treated with toxic chemotherapies; however, in our study, we focused on reducing the production of cholesterol in cancer cells, which could kill cancer cells and reduce the need for toxic chemotherapy."

The findings now suggest that targeting the production of cholesterol could help to reduce the development of drug-resistant cancer cells during rounds of chemotherapy, thereby helping to improve patient outcomes.

Image credit: iStock/Jovanmandic