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The proteins in tumor cells are attacked by a molecule that could later form the basis of a new drug. This targeted therapy could be a breakthrough in the treatment of melanoma, as well as pancreatic and breast cancer, if clinical trials at the National Institute of Oncology are successful. The institute has been carrying out research for many years, in addition to providing innovative therapeutic solutions and acting as a training center. All this is a prerequisite for the Comprehensive Cancer Center accreditation, which was awarded for the fourth time to the region’s leading oncology institution.
Prof. Dr. Csaba Polgár, the Director General of the National Institute of Oncology spoke in an interview with Index about when the Hungarian drug will be ready and the National Institute of Oncology as an accredited Comprehensive Cancer Center.
“Currently, we have promising results in melanoma, breast cancer and pancreatic cancer,” the expert started. Following clinical trials, the new drug could be on the market in a few years’ time, he pointed out. “This would be a breakthrough, as there is no oncology drug currently being developed in Hungary, and our research could be the first.”
Concerning the testing, “phase I-II clinical trials are usually used in advanced stage, metastatic patients and if they prove to be effective and safe, phase III trials can be initiated in large numbers of patients.”
More effective targeted therapy could improve patients’ chances of survival, and a Hungarian drug patent could also have a national economic benefit that has not yet been achieved in the field of oncology,
the doctor stressed.
Asked by the newsportal about whether participation in research is a prerequisite for qualification as a Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Director General noted that the institution has to provide a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic services for all types of cancer. In addition, it must also be at the forefront of education, clinical research, and rare disease management, as well as being a center for epidemiology and methodology, and maintaining a national cancer registry. So far, only 33 institutions in 10 countries have been able to meet this standard, and in the Central and Eastern European region, the National Institute of Oncology has been the only one to have achieved this certification since 2008.
As a comprehensive cancer center, “we have access to technologies such as CyberKnife (fully robotic radiotherapy device), certain brachytherapy (radiation treatment given directly into the body) procedures, whole-body irradiation or the full range of robotic surgery.” “A quarter of our patients come from further afield, the vast majority from Budapest, Pest County, in line with our regional coverage. (…) Every year, we treat half a million people on an outpatient basis, 20,000 on an inpatient basis, 40% of all radiotherapy treatments are carried out at the institute, and we perform tens of thousands of operations,” the expert detailed.
Touching on the topic of the improving statistics about the survival of metastatic cancers, the Director General emphasized that targeted and immunotherapies have made major breakthroughs in some areas.
For breast cancer, colorectal cancer and melanoma, there is an increasing proportion of patients who can be cured for 5-15 years with targeted and immunotherapy, even in the case of multiple metastases.
Unfortunately, such results are not available in all areas, and such breakthroughs have not yet been achieved in pancreatic cancer.
According to an OECD Cancer Report, Hungary still leads the world in preventable deaths, particularly from cancer. The Director General added that preventing avoidable disease is of paramount importance. “This includes cutting down on smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, avoiding obesity. Excessive alcohol consumption and a diet high in fatty, spicy foods are key factors in the development of pancreatic cancer.”
Cancer is not just a disease of the elderly, the loss of people under 65 from work is also a burden on the national economy. Prostate cancer typically appears after the age of 50, with an increasing incidence after 70, and breast cancer in young people is often genetically predisposed, he explained. Colorectal cancer has been occurring at younger and younger ages in recent years, and pancreatic cancer is also occurring earlier, at ages as young as 50.
On whether the expansion of public health screening and more effective therapies succeed in reducing cancer mortality, Prof. Dr. Csaba Polgár noted that in Hungary, 10% more cancers are being detected than 10 years ago, but the number of deaths from these cancers is stagnating, meaning that the effectiveness of therapies has improved significantly. In addition, with screening, the disease can be detected earlier and thus better treated. Hungary is now at the stage where cancer mortality is starting to decline.
According to the 2030 target of the National Cancer Control Program, we want to reduce cancer mortality by 10%, despite the rising incidence.”
Via Index; Featured image via Pexels
