HIV drug stops cervical cancer in laboratory test

	Tweet

A commonly used HIV medicine may also help prevent cervical cancer and could be developed into an anti-cancer cream, early laboratory tests by British scientists suggest.

Researchers at the University of Manchester said on Friday that test-tube studies showed the drug lopinavir selectively killed human papilloma virus (HPV)—the virus that causes cervical cancer—as well as HIV.

Lopinavir belongs to a class of HIV drugs known as protease inhibitors. It is a key component of Abbott Laboratories Inc’s best-selling pill Kaletra.

Dr Ian Hampson and his colleagues in Manchester believe lopinavir could eventually be made into a simple cream or pessary, offering an alternative to surgery for women with precancerous lesions.

No clinical trials have yet commenced, however.

Results of the team’s early research will be published in next month’s issue of the journal Anti-Viral Therapy and will also be presented at the International HPV meeting in Prague on Sept. 5.

Merck & Co Inc and GlaxoSmithKline Plc have both developed ground-breaking vaccines to prevent strains of HPV that cause most cases of cervical cancer.

But Hampson said not all women would be vaccinated and not all lesions would be prevented by the new shots, leaving a role for non-surgical therapies such as his team’s proposed cream. 

RELATED STORIES:
Obese women in Canada are less likely to be screened for cervical cancer   Newer cervical cancer test no better than the old?   Cervical cancer vaccines in development   HPV testing: Indications of a benefit in primary screening   Study indicates vaccine prevents cervical cancer   Health Groups Issue Cervical Cancer Screening Guidelines   Screening for cervical cancer low for immigrant women   Cervical cancer vaccine gives long protection   Post-treatment PET Scans Can Reassure Cervical Cancer Patients   Optimal Treatment and Minimal Complications in Cervical Cancer Patients   Singapore questions cervical cancer vaccine for teens   Glaxo HPV vaccine shows promise for women 26-55   Common virus kills cancer   Cervical disease sufferers could benefit from HPV vaccine   A Cervical Cancer Screening Month Resolution   CDC recommends human papillomavirus virus vaccination   HPV Clearance Tied to Cervical Cancer Disparity   Cervical cancer screening: Too many are left unprotected   Smoking increases risk cervical cancer   Cervical cancer vaccine tipped for nine year olds   Health groups issue proposed cervical cancer screening guidelines   Women with AIDS face cervical cancer threat

Comments

[ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not Armenian Medical Network's stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

There are no comments for this entry yet. [ + Comment here + ]