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New drug targets CRC stem cells

califsue
califsue CSN Member Posts: 80
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
I just went to a lecture given by Dr. Heinz Lenz of USC Norris Cancer center. He showed a slide of a tree and said that treating CRC with chemo is like de-leafing the tree. The trouble is that you are left with roots which he compared to CRC stem cells. That is why if you can reduce tumor size with chemo and get all of the tumor surgically removed (including all CRC stem cells) you can go for cure. He did not say that some people are not cured by chemo alone. He did say that some people due to their genetic makeup do not respond as well to chemo.

The exciting news is that his team at USC has been developing a new drug that has not been named yet (they refer to it as C82). The testing has been done in Japan. It will be ready to go into his clinic ( I expect for trials?) in one year. It has been shown to actively treat CRC cancer, pancreatic cancer and leukemia with NO side effects. It targets the stem cells. A possible cure for metastatic disease.

My posting is probably premature, but I was so excited last night and filled with such hope that I just had to share the good news with all of you. (I taped the lecture so I would be sure to get my facts straight. I can't rely on my chemo brain.)

Take good care,
Susan
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Comments

  • Sundanceh
    Sundanceh CSN Member Posts: 4,392 Member
    #2
    How very interesting
    Thank you so much,Sue

    That's terrific sounding news...wish we could all get started now...but we'll have to wait a bit.

    I can certainly see how you would be excited - how great that you were able to sit in on something like this and hear an expert in the field talk about upcoming treatments.

    I thank you for sharing the news!

    -Craig
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  • GetBusyLivin
    GetBusyLivin CSN Member Posts: 25
    #3
    Hi Susan!
    Thanks so much this information from Dr. Lenz's lecture. The new drug sounds very promising, I'm excited too! We actually saw Dr. Lenz for a second opinion several months ago. (I found him kind of intimidating but so very knowledgeable!) We'd love to get into his trials, when they're ready.
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  • lisa42
    lisa42 CSN Member Posts: 3,625 Member
    #4
    wow- hopeful!!
    Hi Susan,

    Thanks for giving us this info. It is very exciting! It gives many of us hope, I'm sure. As I'm on chemo for the third time in two years now and am wondering how much longer my tumors will keep responding to the irinotecan, it's nice to know there are things looming out there that will eventually be there for us when we need something else. Thanks for sharing-

    Fight on, everyone!!

    Lisa
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