Protein that halts cancer discovered by British scientists - Mirror.co.uk

Scientists have discovered a protein that blocks cancer.

They found the OPCML molecule, active in normal tissue, is switched off in cancer cells.

Replacing the protein on cell surfaces may offer a new treatment for the disease, the Ovarian Cancer Action experts at Imperial College in London hope.

Professor Hani Gabra, director of the charity's research centre, said: "Our findings demonstrate how OPCML works in normal and cancerous cells - and points towards new approaches to treatment of ovarian cancer."

The team, whose findings are reported in the journal Cancer Discovery, found OPCML was "silenced" in 1,500 patients with different forms of cancer, including bowel, womb, brain, liver and lung.

Further research may lead to cancer patients being given OPCML to block tumour growth.

The charity also announced the launch of a project to create the first national ovarian cancer tissue bank, hosted at sites in London, Cambridge, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The disease kills a woman every two hours in the UK and only around four in 10 British women survive five years after diagnosis.

The charity hopes the new laboratory will lead to more targeted treatments for different sub-types of ovarian cancer - and reveal why many patients' disease becomes resistant to chemotherapy.

Professor Iain McNeish, co-chief investigator of the BriTROC project and professor of gynaecological oncology at Barts Cancer Institute, said: "This collaborative gives us a unique opportunity to improve the outlook for women with ovarian cancer by studying, in detail, the changes in their cancer over time.

"It will be an internationally unique resource. This will help us understand why ovarian cancer stops responding to chemotherapy and help us to develop new treatments for ovarian cancer that comes back despite initially successful treatment."

Gilda Witte, CEO of Ovarian Cancer Action, said: "This is a horrible disease and it is vital we understand its complexity in order to combat its many challenges.

"Too many women die from it and we have to stop that."