The drug represents a breakthrough in the process of photodynamic therapy (PDT), where laser light is used in combination with a light-sensitive drug to break down and destroy cancerous tissue. Currently, there is only one drug called Photofrin approved by the federal government for this use. Photofrin, however, causes patients' skin to be excessively sensitive to natural and artificial light of any kind, so that patients must literally live in the dark, unable to go outside into direct sunlight, for weeks after treatment. The new drug, Pc 4, a phthalocyanine compound, targets cancerous cells preferentially, leaving healthy tissue alone. When laser light is directed to the patient's skin, it activates the Pc4 that has infiltrated the cancerous tissue. In combination, the light and the drug destroy cancer cells.
Led by Nancy Oleinick, Ph.D., director of radiation biology at the Ireland Cancer Center, and professor of radiation oncology at CWRU, the research team spent nearly a decade developing Pc 4. "This innovative therapy promises to be a significant advance in cancer treatment," says Timothy Kinsella, M.D., a member of the team and director of radiation oncology at the Ireland Cancer Center and chairman of the department of radiation oncology at UHC and CWRU. "If the trials are successful, PDT with Pc 4 will eventually join surgery, radiation and chemotherapy as part of the arsenal against cancer."
As a photosensitizing drug, Pc 4 prepares cancerous tissue to be broken down by light and oxygen. A small amount of the drug is administered intravenously to the patient over a two-hour period. About 24 hours later, a red laser light is applied, which is absorbed by the tumor-localized Pc 4. The light-activated photosensitizing compound produces forms of oxygen that kill cancer cells and break down the tumor while leaving surrounding normal cells virtually untouched. The study will focus on cutaneous (skin) lesions metastasized from various cancers such as breast, lymphoma, head and neck and non-melanoma skin cancers. In this Phase I trial, researchers try to determine the maximum dose of the drug that can be tolerated by the patient and toxic side effects related to dosage. They will also determine which dose is best for treating cancer. For more information, call the Ireland Cancer Center's Information Service at 1-800-641-2422.
University Hospitals Health System (UHHS) is the region's premier healthcare delivery system, serving patients at more than 150 locations throughout northern Ohio.
The System's 947-bed, tertiary medical center, University Hospitals of Cleveland (UHC), is the primary affiliate of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU). Together, they form the largest center for biomedical research in the State of Ohio. The System provides the major clinical base for translational researchers at the Case Research Institute, a partnership between UHC and CWRU School of Medicine, as well as a broad and well-characterized patient population for clinical trials involving the most advanced treatments. Included in UHC are Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, among the nation's best children's hospitals; Ireland Cancer Center, northern Ohio's only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center (the nation's highest designation); and MacDonald Women's Hospital, Ohio's only hospital for women.
The Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is the largest medical research institution in Ohio and 14th largest among the nation's medical schools for research funding from the National Institutes of Health. Seven Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the school.
The School of Medicine is also recognized throughout the international medical community for outstanding achievements in teaching. In 2002, it became the third school in history to receive a flawless accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the authority that grants accreditation to U.S. and Canadian M.D. programs. Annually, the School of Medicine trains more than 600 M.D. and M.D./Ph.D. students. Students learn from superb educators, researchers, and clinicians. CWRU's ground-breaking medical education program gives students clinical experience early in their training, teaches students through an innovative organ-based system, and fosters a professional and collegial atmosphere in which students are given considerable opportunity to pursue their special interests in biomedical science and clinical medicine.