A “promising” discovery could potentially lead to new treatments for leukaemia, experts have said. Researchers hope the finding could pave way for new treatment options for some of the most vulnerable leukaemia patients – who are often told that they are unable to go through intensive treatments.
The team of experts, led by Dr William Grey and colleagues, examined cellular reactions to treatment after they “inhibited” a protein called CKS1. Most drugs targeting acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) cause toxicity to blood stem cells called hematopoietic cells.
These treatments can also fail to target leukaemic stem cells, which can lead to a patient relapsing. To try to overcome these problems, Dr Grey and colleagues identified that inhibiting the action of CKS1, leukaemic stem cells can be successfully targeted without causing harm to normal, healthy stem cells.
