Targeting the Driver of Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed non-skin malignancy and second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men in the U.S. Between 20% and 40% of prostate cancer patients will see recurrence of the disease, even after initial treatment, and a portion of these cancer cases will become metastatic. The ERG oncogene is the most prevalent and validated genomic alteration in prostate cancer— over 4 million of the patients living with prostate cancer worldwide harbor ERG-po.
Precision Targeting of The ERG Oncogene
This technology is a new chemical entity that inhibits ERG protein expression to slow and potentially prevent the growth of prostate tumors. The compound has demonstrated the ability to slow the growth of VCaP cells—a specific prostate cancer cell line with ERG gene fusion—and has also shown additive effects when combined with an androgen receptor inhibitor, a standard treatment approach for controlling prostate cancer. This Henry Jackson Foundation ERG inhibitor also has the potential to slow other ERG-positive cell lines including colon cancer, Ewing sarcoma, and leukemia.
Applications
This innovation has important applications in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of prostate cancer and other diseases associated with an overexpression or altered ERG protein. These applications include:
- Pharmaceutical compounds
- Preventative therapeutics, especially for individuals with a family history of the disease
- Cancer maintenance therapeutics after removal or disappearance of tumor or cancer
- Biological assays
Solution Advantages
- Adaptable: The starting molecular scaffold can be modified to improve pharmacokinetics properties, as well as potency and selectivity
- Widely applicable: Demonstrates the potential to treat not only prostate cancer, but also colorectal cancer, Ewing sarcoma, and leukemia
- Powerful: Less likely to lead to development of resistance to treatment than other conventional solutions that leverage androgen receptor inhibitors
Status
Development: early pre-clinical
Patent: Issued patent US10287587B2 represents granted patents in multiple countries and additional patent applications are in process.
Licensing Opportunities
HJF is seeking development partners and/or licenses for this technology.