Scientists at Cancer Research UK’s London Research Institute
(LRI) and the Technical University of Denmark have developed an
RNAi-based approach to determine paclitaxel response. Focusing
on estrogen-receptor (ER)/progesterone-receptor (PR)/human
epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2; ERBB2)-negative
(triple-negative) disease, they sequentially deleted 829 genes
involved in cells’ response to the chemotherapy to see which
missing or faulty genes would prevent the drug from working.
Their results identified six genes which, if faulty, impacted on
the effectiveness of the drug in cancer cells in vitro. The team
then confirmed that the same six genes in patients’ breast
cancer cells could be used to predict which individuals would
derive the most benefit from paclitaxel. “Our research shows it
is now possible to rapidly pinpoint genes that prevent cancer
cells from being destroyed by anticancer drugs and use these
same genes to predict which patients will benefit from specific
types of treatment,” states Char