Skin cancer prevention treatment developed at Uni of SA

Scientists at the University of South Australia's Centre for Pharmaceutical Research have developed a topical treatment that could be used to prevent skin cancers from developing in susceptible people.

The team, headed by centre director Prof Allan Evans, has applied for a provisional patent for the treatment, which is based on a drug already approved for other clinical purposes.

Cancer chemoprevention, or the use of drugs to prevent cancers from developing, has become a focus of much research in the last few years, according to Evans. He cited the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce the incidence of colon cancer as one example of this approach.

The drug that is being used by Evans and his group is normally administered orally, he said, but very little of it would be able to get to the basal layers of the skin. So the researchers have formulated it as a topical treatment, to apply directly to the skin.

After demonstrating that the formulation caused cultured skin cancer cells to die via a process of programmed cell death, or apoptosis, the researchers turned to a hairless mouse model that spontaneously develops skin cancers when exposed to UV light.

According to Evans, the mice that had been treated with the topical preparation developed significantly fewer and smaller tumours than control mice, and the onset of the tumours was also significantly delayed.

"This is the first time in which a topical therapy of this type has been shown to prevent the generation of skin cancers as a result of UV light exposure," he said. "Our study demonstrated clearly that the drug is effective in delaying the development of large tumours and this result is very promising in terms of its potential usefulness for humans.

"Until now nobody has developed a medication that would be suitable for people who have a predisposition to skin cancer. We believe that we can provide these people with a therapeutical option that they currently don't have."

Spin-off possible

Evans said the group hoped to form a spin-off company or venture to develop the product commercially. "We have strong interest from a US pharmaceutical company," he said.

At the moment it was evaluating various options, including partnering with a pharmaceutical company and applying for start-up funds such as money from the AusIndustry Biotechnology Innovation Funds, said Evans.

He said he planned to seek approval for the product from the US FDA, but hoped to carry out human clinical trials in Australia, through the Centre for Pharmaceutical Research, which carries out clinical trials in Australia for US and European groups.

"We anticipate starting human trials in the next 12-24 months and, all going well, would expect to have our product on the market in three to five years," Evans said.

As the drug in the topical formulation developed by Evans and his team is already approved, there is no need for classical toxicology studies, which should speed up the approval process.

Evans said he also planned to trial a veterinary use for the product, believing that it could be very effective in preventing skin cancers in pets. White cats, for example, are prone to developing skin cancers of the ears and face.