A new study has identified a more precise and effective way to prevent cancer from spreading to the brain. The paper, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, details the development of novel drug candidates that target a key enzyme implicated in the spread of lung, breast, skin and other cancers to the brain. The work builds on a promising new therapeutic strategy first reported by the same group of researchers last year.
The new drug candidates are designed to intercept rogue cancer cells before they depart from primary tumors and ultimately travel to the brain.
Lead author Sheila Singh, based at both King’s College London and McMaster University, says this type of cancer—called metastatic brain cancer—is the most common type of brain tumor in adults and comes with an extremely grim outlook, with 90% of patients dying within one year of diagnosis.








