Muristek
The cancer drug that turned scientific thinking on its head – and became a very British success story
Olaparib is making an impact in the treatment of ovarian, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers – and it’s a great example of how charities can support innovative but risky research when industry turns away. This is its journey from research to market
More than 40,000 people worldwide have been treated with the drug olaparib for ovarian, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers. On its approval for use by drug regulators in 2014, it became the first of a new class of drugs called PARP inhibitors that kill cancer cells by undermining their ability to repair damage to their DNA.
In one clinical trial, almost half of women whose advanced ovarian cancers contained mutations in one of two genes – BRCA1 and BRCA2 – saw no deterioration of their disease five years after being given olaparib. That compares with one in five (48.3% vs 20.5%) for those given a placebo.
Top: BRCA2, a human gene and its protein product. Certain variations of the BRCA2 gene increase risks for breast cancer; below: Prof Steve Jackson
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