Soon, A Drug That Controls Cholesterol and Curbs Cancer

Scientists have developed a drug that is twice as beneficial. It can treat breast cancer and also act as as a remedy to lower high cholesterol levels. It is made with a compound which is used to control cholesterol but has been found capable of fighting cancerous cells. Salman Hyder, Professor of Biomedical Sciences at University of Missouri in the US, says , "The compound exhibited anti-tumor properties in both human samples, which were outside the body, and in samples that were administered by injection into the mice,"  He further noted, "In both cases, proteins that cause tumors to grow were eliminated, leading to more aggressive cell death,"During the study, the compound was administered to human breast cancer cells and it was found that it brought down the cell growth drastically. The compound managed to killed tumor cells by destroying estrogen which is a protein that progresses the growth of tumor cells. (More: Tomato-rich diet may lower breast cancer risk)Similar tests done were done on mice with breast cancer which yielded positive results.
Previous studies show that 70% of breast cancers depend on hormones which can be treated with medicines like tamoxifen that inhibit hormonal dependence. In most cases, cancer cells tend to become immune to therapies and continue to propagate. Cholesterol can play an important role in curbing the growth of cancer cells as it gets converted into hormones in tumor cells, thus developing an anti-hormone resistance. (More: High-fat diets linked to certain types of breast cancer)Hyder also highlighted the efforts that are being made on the prospects of future research in this domain. "Further clinical testing can lead to a drug that has the dual purpose of fighting high cholesterol and cancer" she said. The study was published in the journal 'Breast Cancer Research and Treatment'.

With inputs from IANS