British researchers are setting out to find new drugs to help treat ovarian cancer, it has been announced.
The researchers are hoping that discoveries about a protein which repairs DNA may provide the key to developing drugs for advanced disease.
They believe that tackling the protein FEN1 could overcome resistance to platinum drug treatment and could also provide treatment for cancer linked to the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.
The project is being led by Dr Srinivasan Madhusudan of Nottingham University Medical School and involves Newcastle University, UK, and the US National Institutes of Health.
The project is being backed by the charity Target Ovarian Cancer.
Chief executive Annwen Jones said: "We are optimistic that Dr Madhusudan’s research project will help advance the understanding of drug resistant and BRCA1 and 2 gene mutation ovarian cancers."
Dr Madhusudan said: "If successful the project will have the potential to benefit very many ovarian cancer patients who suffer from platinum resistance.
"If we are able to demonstrate that FEN1 inhibitors can overcome platinum resistance and can also selectively target BRCA deficient ovarian cancer cell lines, we may be able to develop a new treatment strategy for ovarian cancer.
"This has the potential to improve survival in patients with advanced ovarian cancer."
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