Vemurafenib is the harbinger of a revolution in cancer medicine. Like Herceptin (trastuzumab) for breast cancer, it is the first example of a drug, for melanoma, targeted on a specific group of patients with a particular faulty gene.
BRAF is a cancer-causing mutation which is implicated in 40 to 60 per cent of melanomas and 8 per cent of other solid cancers. The new drug works by selectively targeting and destroying tumour cells that carry the BRAF gene but it has no effect against melanomas that lack the mutation. It is also being developed for use in other cancers including bowel cancer.The advantage of this approach over blockbuster chemotherapy drugs is that patients avoid the risks of being treated with drugs that don't work. At the same time drugs are not wasted on those who won't benefit. The downside is that as the potential market is reduced, the cost will rise.
Source:The Independent
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