7 March 2013

A team of 15 researchers at the Institut de pharmacologie de l’Université de Sherbrooke (IP UdeS; Université de Sherbrooke’s Institute of Pharmacology), led by Professor Robert Day, have made a breakthrough in developing a more effective treatment for prostate cancer. Clinical testing of a drug could begin within two or three years.

The researchers have discovered that blocking the action of an enzyme called PACE4 can inhibit tumour growth.

The results obtained in animal testing with the drug prototype have confirmed the discovery’s potential: “Blocking PACE4 in mice yields spectacular effects and the tumours stop growing,” stated Dr. Day, who is also a researcher at the Centre de recherche clinique Étienne-Le Bel (CRCELB; clinical research centre) at the Centre hospitalier universitaire de Sherbrooke (CHUS; Sherbrooke university medical centre).

Given that the current therapy is limited, the Sherbrooke team’s discovery holds out the hope of new treatment options for men with prostate cancer.

Impact Grant from Canadian Cancer Society

The Canadian Cancer Society has announced that it has awarded $1.25 million to the team of investigators at the Université de Sherbrooke.

Source: Université de Sherbrooke and Canadian Cancer Society
Photo credit: Robert Dumont