Cancer Drugs Not Cure

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif-Drugs that were once touted as the cure to cancer have shown only a slight benefit in testing.

The dramatic tumor shrinkage or disappearance that doctors originally predicted from drugs has not happened in trial studies. The three drugs discovered within Judah Folkman's, MD, lab are within a new field pioneered by the physician and his team. Angiogensis, which starves tumors with chemicals and stops them form building new blood vessels, includes endostatin and angiostatin drugs. Both drugs were discovered by Michael O'Reilly, MD.

An article in The New York Times incorrectly labeled these new drugs as a possible cancer cure. However, only in a few cases have the drugs stopped growing cancer. In some cases the drug has halted cancer in some parts of the body, while having little effect elsewhere. The drugs do seem to slow the flow of blood to the patient's tumor.

The researchers will move on with these drugs and see if they are more effective when combined with chemotherapy and radiation.

Information from www.washingtonpost.com