United Press International
October 21, 2009
LEEDS, England -- British medical scientists say they've demonstrated that unusual metal compounds can be used to form effective cancer drugs.
Researchers at the University of Leeds and the University of Warwick said such metals can form an effective treatment against colon and ovarian cancer, including cancerous cells that have developed immunity to other drugs.
The study showed a range of compounds containing the metals ruthenium and osmium, which are found in the same part of the periodic table as platinum and gold, cause significant cell death in ovarian and colon cancer cells, and are also very effective against ovarian cancer cells which are resistant to the drug Cisplatin, a highly successful drug that contains platinum.
Cisplatin was discovered in the 1970s and is one of the most effective cancer drugs on the market, with a 95 percent cure rate against testicular cancer. Since the success of Cisplatin, the world's chemists have been trying to discover whether other metal compounds can be used to treat cancer.
The results of the new study appear in The Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.
Copyright 2009 by United Press International
We care about your feedback. Let us know how we can improve your CancerCompass experience.