With over 10 million deaths attributed to it annually worldwide, it is evident that cancer is a global killer. Oral cancer is one of the biggest contributors to this list of casualties. Offering some good news with regard to its treatment, scientists have found that the application of an ointment that contains an anti-tumor factor can improve the potency of cancer treatment.
In a new study, researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) have revealed that treating oral cancer cells with miR-634—a microRNA that hones in on pro-tumor factors—can increase the efficiency of treatment with cisplatin, a crucial anti-cancer drug. The research was published in the journal Molecular Therapy Oncolytics.
"Our study suggests that reversing miR-634-mediated cytoprotective processes activated in cancer cells is a potentially useful strategy to improve CDDP efficacy against advanced OSCC," wrote the authors.
Improving Effectiveness of Cancer Treatment
Over 450,000 new cases of oral cancer are reported every year across the world. Among these cases, over 90 percent comprise a form of cancer known as oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Though radiation and chemotherapy can be used to treat OSCC, a significant number of patients develop resistance to cisplatin; a chemotherapy medication that is used to treat various types of cancers.
Dr. Phuong Xuan Tran, lead author of the study, explained in a statement, "We recently found that miR-634 counteracts some cell-protective processes, such as anti-apoptotic signaling and antioxidant scavenging, that are activated in cancer cells that are resistant to cisplatin. This suggests that increasing the amount of this small molecule in cells could increase their sensitivity to this drug."
In order to ascertain whether miR-634 can aid in increasing the sensitivity of tumors to cisplatin, the team studied two separate lines of OSCC cells. These cell lines were treated with both cisplatin and miRNA, and the number of cells that survived was counted.
Dr. Johji Inazawa, senior author of the study, illustrated, "The results were very clear. Treatment with miR-634 effectively increased cisplatin-induced cytotoxicity and overcame cisplatin resistance in OSCC cells, resulting in increased tumor cell killing."
Potential to Treat Various Cancers
To confirm these findings, the team turned to a mice model. They used the treatment combination on experimental tumors in the animals. It was learnt that when cisplatin was injected into the rodents and a miR-634 ointment was applied to the tumors, rapid shrinkage in the tumors was observed.
"Our findings suggest that miR-634-mediated repression of pro-tumor factors can effectively increase the sensitivity of OSCC to existing chemotherapeutic options such as cisplatin," noted Dr. Tran.
Taking the observations into consideration, the findings of the study demonstrate that an ointment of miR-634 may aid in the enhancement of the impact of chemotherapy among patients ailing from advanced OSCC. As the combined effects of cisplatin and miR-634 were also witnessed in ovarian cancer, bladder cancer, and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell lines, this synergized treatment may potentially be efficient across several forms of cancer.
