A new drug could keep cancer under control for longer for men with advanced prostate cancer and will be tested in a new trial funded with £1.9 million from Prostate Cancer UK.
Current treatments, like chemotherapy or hormone-targeting therapies, can be extremely effective for men with advanced prostate cancer, preventing further progression of the cancer for many months, even years. However, these treatments eventually stop working, as some cancer cells develop resistance.
Previous Prostate Cancer UK-funded research demonstrated that one way prostate cancer cells become resistant to treatment is by sending out ‘SOS signals’ to white blood cells which then act to block the immune system and mask the cancer cells from treatment. The researchers were able to conduct a previous clinical trial, called the ACE trial, testing a drug that stopped one of the switches used to do this for from working, with extremely promising results.
With this new funding, Professor Johann de Bono, Dr Adam Sharp and Dr Alec Paschalis from The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) will now run a clinical trial, called ASpiRE, to test a new drug called SX-682, which was developed by Syntrix Pharmaceuticals. SX-682 can turn off two of those switches instead of one, acting like a pair of noise cancelling headphones, and the researchers believe that this means that it will work better and allow existing prostate cancer treatments to work for longer. In this trial they will test SX-682 alongside the hormone-targeting treatment Apalutamide, provided by Janssen.
The trial will test this new drug on men diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer and determine which dose gives the best response with the fewest side effects. If successful, further trials will then be needed to determine exactly how effective this treatment approach can be at keeping the cancer under control.
Professor Johann de Bono, ASpiRE Chief Investigator at the ICR, said: “In our previous research, we found two critical ‘switches’ on white blood cells. These switches help to pull the cells into a growing tumour, supporting its growth and potentially making existing treatments less effective. This is a big problem for prostate cancer patients, and men are understandably worried about whether their cancer will return. We designed this trial specifically to rectify this. Receiving our funding from Prostate Cancer UK is allowing us to undertake this crucial work. In this trial, we’ll be testing the drug to see if it can stop cancer growth and delay relapse in men with stage four prostate cancer. This could make a huge difference to how we treat patients with advanced prostate cancer.”
Dr Matthew Hobbs, Director of Research at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “Prostate Cancer UK has funded research through multiple grants over the past two decades to understand the complex biology at play here including the previous ACE trial to provide proof of concept that this is a viable new way to treat prostate cancer. Now, with the larger funding available through our sector-leading Transformational Impact Awards, we are building on that promise, aiming to accelerate development of a drug that could be used as part of a man’s treatment to extend lives through this approach. We’re dedicated to funding research that delivers totally new ways to treat prostate cancer. To achieve that goal, though, we need to work in partnership. Prostate Cancer UK’s global perspective has enabled us to identify and work with Syntrix to build the evidence needed to take their exciting drug forward. By bringing together the company’s innovative drug, the UK’s world leading expertise in prostate cancer, and our funding, we can, together, drive progress to ensure that men can have longer, healthier lives with their loved ones.”
John Zebela, President and CEO at Syntrix Pharmaceuticals said: “We are hugely excited about the potential for SX-682 to provide better outcomes for patients with advanced cancer. However, as a small company it would not have been possible for us to fund this trial. I’m delighted that Prostate Cancer UK’s vision, expertise and funding have provided an opportunity to work with Professor De Bono’s team to provide the next crucial layer of evidence needed to take this drug into the clinic to make a real impact for men with prostate cancer. We look forward to working together over the next few years on this trial and sharing the benefits of a hopefully successful trial in future.”
Prostate Cancer UK is the leading funder of prostate cancer research in the UK and this £1,977,694 funding award is one of 10 Transformational Impact Awards we have now funded. In the last 30 years, Prostate Cancer UK has invested more than £120 million into research to expand our knowledge and understanding of prostate cancer and accelerate breakthroughs in how we diagnose and treat the disease.
The charity will continue to fund innovative and impactful research until all men with prostate cancer can benefit from early, accurate diagnosis and effective, precise treatments. To support this trial, and our other groundbreaking research into prostate cancer, donate to Prostate Cancer UK at prostatecanceruk.org/donate.
