subject: P13K Pathway – A Medical Breakthrough! [print this page] P13-kinase (P13K pathway) is a breakthrough in cancer research that has hit the medical world by storm. P13-kinases are a family of enzymes which are closely involved with the growth of cells, differences in structure, motility and movement between cells, which in turn are involved in cancer growth. The P13K pathway has been shown to play a significant role in growth and survival of various cancers, including colonic cancer, breast and lung cancer, which makes it a relevant place to start for therapeutic intervention.
Scientists have experimented with closing off, or inhibiting, not only the P13K pathway, but also targeting other kinases which the cancer may use as an escape route, by variations of blocking different pathways. This has led to new and exciting results being discovered which point to the importance of targeting P13K early, (particularly when planning to use treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation) which may have a positive beneficial effect. Basically, what the medical world is saying is that by being able to simultaneously block off various pathways, they will be able to determine whether or not a cancer patient is likely to respond to a P13K agent intead of exposing them unnecessarily to a whole lot of chemicals and their related side effects. This has to be good news for the patient.
This is obviously very encouraging for the future of cancer patients and already companies are snapping up various P13k inhibitors including Sanofi-aventis and Infinity. It's not going to be an easy approach to targeting cancer, and identifying biomarkers will be of prime importance, as well as working out which combinations may make a more effective therapeutical approach than a single agent.
It will be interesting, however, to see how the P13K pathway tests and connotations pan out over the next few years. It certainly seems as if medicine is moving in the right direction and if molecular testing can determine whether or not a sometimes harrowing treatment such as chemotherapy is likely to work or not, then this has to be great news for all cancer patients, doesn't it.
