Seriously ill
cancer patients are being given one last chance of life at a
new centre that offers experimental treatments
The unit at Bart's Hospital in London hopes to fast-track new medicines by
testing
drugs on patients who are no longer
responding to conventional therapies.
Normally it takes at least 10 years to develop a cancer
drug.
But head of the new centre Professor John Gribben hopes to halve that.
Drugs developed in the lab can be quickly tested
on patients who have no other hope.
Blood samples come back the same day and give the team an early indication on
whether the chemical is hitting the target. Medicines can be fast-tracked or
dumped.
Professor Gribben told Sky News: "We no longer have to wait to complete a
study to see what happens to the cancer.
"We can get a very early clue on whether the drug is doing what we want it to
do. If it isn't, we can get the patient off the study, so they are not being
exposed to the potential toxicity of the drug."
Jill Bracey-Cowley is one of the guinea pigs.
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http://uk.news.yahoo.com/skynews/20080320/tuk-new-drugs-tried-on-cancer-patients-45dbed5.html