Drug Combination to Change Cancer Treatments

Drug combination to change cancer treatments. The advancements in medical science have been revolutionary when it comes to treating most human diseases. However, some diseases still defy us, but even or those diseases, we are advancing by leaps and bounds and a cure may well be within our grasp. One of the most deadly class of disease is cancer. Once it takes root in the human body, most cancers are impossible to treat. Every year cancer is responsible for numerous deaths all over the world. It has been a constant reminder of the need or success, for almost all the scientists who are in a quest to find its cure.

Keeping the cancer levels in mind an international trial was conducted on 945 patients. The results of the trial were quite good and the researchers are considering them to be a real game changer in this field. In this trial, 60% patients suffering from advanced melanoma witnessed their tumours were either shrinking or were being brought under control. It was reported that the tumours either stabilised or shrunk for an average of 11 and a half months. The drugs used in the trial were Ipilimumab and Nivolumab, both of which were developed by Bristol-Myers Squibb. The drugs effectively stopped the tumours in 58 % of cases as revealed by the report compiled by BBC.

Ipilimumab, which is also known as Yervoy is a whole antibody type drug and is used for the treatment of cancer. It has already received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. It can recognize and neutralise cancer cells. However, though the drugs are very efective, the cost of treatment is just that much higher. A dose of Ipilimumab is given every three months and the cost for it is around £100,000 for a year of treatment. The exorbitant level of pricing limits the use of the drug to select people only. The other drug, Nivolumab is given every two weeks until it stops working after which some other treatment is sought.

Dr James Larking revealed that by taking both the drugs together, the immune system was able to recognize the cancerous tumours and fight them. He added “For immunotherapies, we’ve never seen tumour shrinkage rates over 50 percent so that’s very significant to see,”

The patients who did not get affected by the drug at all should also be examined for the failure of the drug. Amidst all the discoveries, there has been no mention about the side effects of the drugs, either individually or together.