An epilepsy drug might have a role in treating breast cancer, researchers reported yesterday.
The York University researchers have conducted laboratory studies on the drug phenytoin.
These suggest it could reduce breast tumour growth at doses equivalent to those given to patients with epilepsy.
They reported their findings in the journal Molecular Cancer.
The drug helps tackle epilepsy by targeting sodium channels, known as VGSCs.
The York researchers tested the drug’s benefit for breast cancer as the sodium channels are also found in breast cancer cells.
Researcher Dr Will Brackenbury said: “This is the first study to show that phenytoin reduces both the growth and spread of breast cancer tumour cells.
"This indicates that re-purposing antiepileptic and antiarrhythmic drugs is worthy of further study as a potentially novel anti-cancer therapy.”
The sodium channel-blocking antiepileptic drug phenytoin inhibits breast tumour growth and metastasis. Molecular Cancer 27 January 2015; doi:10.1186/s12943-014-0277-x [abstract]
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