Receiving a diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme is devastating news for patients and their families. Our GBM program is solely focused on finding treatments for this type of cancer.
What is Berubicin?
Berubicin belongs to a class of drugs known as anthracyclines. These drugs are chemotherapy agents used to treat certain types of cancer. They work by damaging the DNA of cancer cells so they can't multiply. As a class of drugs, anthracyclines have historically been unable to cross the tightly packed layer of cells that line the blood vessels in the brain. This is known as the blood-brain barrier and it's there to protect your brain from harmful substances. For people with GBM, this means anthracycline treatments are not used to treat their cancer. However, since Berubicin has been specifically engineered to cross the blood-brain barrier, it has the potential to be effective in the treatment of GBM.
What is Glioblastoma?
Glioblastoma multiforme, often shortened to Glioblastoma or GBM, is the most severe and most common type of brain cancer, accounting for more than 50% of all brain cancers in adults. Scientists don’t know what causes GBM, but they know the tumors contain different types of cells called “glial cells”. There are 3 main types of glial cells: Astrocytes, Oligodendrocytes, and Ependymal cells.
The current standard of care for GBM approved by the US Food and Drug Administration is called temozolomide (Temodar®). Temozolomide works by stopping cancer cells from making new DNA, which in turn stops the cancer cells from multiplying and spreading to different parts of your brain. But temozolomide doesn’t work for everyone.
That’s why we are carrying out investigations to find out if our product, Berubicin, can help people with GBM.
The Blood Brain Barrier
Anthracyclines are not able to cross the tightly packed layer of cells that line the blood vessels in the brain. This is known as the blood-brain barrier and it's there to protect your brain from harmful substances. For people with GBM, this means anthracycline treatments are not used to treat their cancer.
Berubicin's Potential
Since Berubicin has been specifically engineered to cross the blood-brain barrier, it has the potential to be effective in the treatment of GBM.
What is metastasis?
Metastasis means that cancer spreads to a different body part from where it started. While glioblastoma is a primary brain tumor (originates in the brain), on the other hand, brain metastases occur when cancer cells spread from their original site to the brain.
Although it is possible for any cancer to spread to the brain, the most common types to cause brain metastasis are lung, breast, colon, kidney and melanoma. These cancers pass through the bloodstream and enter the central nervous system through the blood-brain barrier (a tightly packed layer of cells that line the blood vessels in the brain).
Unfortunately, cancers that pass through the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain are very difficult to treat and the treatment options are often very toxic, causing side effects and diminished quality of life. Treatments that can cross the blood-brain barrier to attack the cancer, but with fewer toxic side effects are needed. As Berubicin may be a suitable treatment for patients whose cancer has spread to the brain, we hope to conduct clinical trials in the future.