A " smart " drug treatment for a recurrent brain cancer slowed tumor growth in more than one-third of the 65 adult patients who tried it.

The study , led by Mayo Clinic researchers and conducted by the North Central Cancer Treatment Group ( NCCTG ), addressed the most common kind of tumor arising from brain tissue of adults, glioblastoma mutiforme.

Current treatment outcomes for this type of cancer are extremely poor: median patient survival is 12 to 16 months, and recurrent disease has a dismal prognosis.

According to the study's lead investigator, Evanthia Galanis, of Mayo Clinic " Treatment was well tolerated, and imaging responses were observed in a significant portion ( 36 percent ) of patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme participating in this study -- which is a high response rate for this very resistant disease. These early results suggest that we are on to a promising new treatment strategy that could potentially help us improve treatment for patients with recurrent glioblastoma. "

NCCTG researchers used an investigational drug that is known as CCI-779, or Temsirolimus, it is a "smart" drug in the sense that it has been designed to target specific changes in the glioblastoma multiforme tumor cells that previous studies have identified as key factors in the tumor's aggressive behavior.

Patients most likely to respond well to the drug shared a common feature -- activation of a specific tumor protein, p70s6 kinase, which is closely associated with the drug target molecule.

Knowing that this protein is a key player in the chain of events that determines drug activity could be useful in screening patients to help determine the best candidates for the drug.
In adults, glioblastoma multiforme is the most common form of brain tumor.
Glioblastoma multiforme accounts for more than 50 percent of the estimated 18,000 primary malignant brain tumors diagnosed each year in the United States.

Source: 41st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology ( ASCO ), 2005


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