ChristianaCare’s Gene Editing Institute achieves a breakthrough that reverses chemotherapy resistance in lung cancer patients.
The study in molecular therapy oncology focused on an aggressive and common form of non-small cell lung cancer.
It accounts for 20-30% of all lung cancer cases according to the American Cancer Society.
"What we have been working on understanding is how we can use CRISPR to really augment standard of care for patients. So what we saw was that by using CRISPR directed gene editing to target NRF2, we can really disrupt treatment resistance within lung cancer cells. This has really spearheaded us into understanding how this works preclinically, and now we're moving into conversations of clinical trials," said Kelly Banas, the lead author of the study and associate director of research at the ChristianaCare Gene Editing Institute.
What this particular approach accomplishes is restoring drug sensitivity and slowing tumor growth.
This breakthrough follows more than a decade of research into the NRF2 gene which is a known driver of treatment resistance.
Banas adds the hope is this breakthrough can lead to similar results for other cancers.
"We're looking at cancers like head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, esophageal, pancreatic, liver,” said Banas. “So the approach itself has great application across many different tumor types, and we hope to reach more patients."
Banas adds drug resistance is one of the biggest challenges in cancer therapy. They hope clinical trials and beyond will allow chemotherapy to improve patient outcomes and enable them to remain healthier during treatment.
The breakthrough by the Gene Editing Institute follows more than a decade of research in the NRF2 gene.
