New drug may help cure breast and ovarian cancer

London, July 7, 2010

A new drug may offer a ray of hope to women who have inherited breast or ovarian cancer, say researchers.

The study conducted by a team at King's College London found that the drug, called olaparib reduced the size of tumours significantly by targeting the cancer cells caused by faulty genes.

These genes are known to cause around 1,500 cases of breast cancer a year and about one in 10 ovarian cancer cases.

The findings revealed that in 40 percent of breast cancer patients and a third of ovarian cancer patients, the drug reduced the size of tumours and stopped them progressing for around six months, reports telegraph.co.uk.

The patients had already been through standard chemotherapy and had advanced disease.

However, the drug is still in the experimental stages and is not widely available yet.

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