Researchers find potential Achille’s heel of leukemia, other cancers

Scientists partly funded by NHLBI identified two proteins in cancer cells that make them resistant to chemotherapy. They discovered that blocking those proteins during therapy eliminated human leukemia in mice. According to the authors of the study, published in Nature Medicine, this molecular mechanism is present in almost all cancers driven by enzymes known as tyrosine kinases, such as lung, breast, colon and brain tumors. “We anticipate that this study opens a new avenue to develop curative therapy not only for leukemia but solid tumors, as well,” said lead investigator Mohammad Azam, Ph.D.