More men with prostate cancer could benefit from olaparib

British scientists have discovered a genetic aberration found in some prostate cancers that could allow more men to be successfully treated with an existing targeted drug.

A team from the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, found that cancer cells which have ‘lost’ DNA repair protein RNASEH2B are killed when treated with a type of drug called a PARP inhibitor, according to the findings of a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

They noted that the RNASEH2B gene plays a role in repairing certain forms of DNA damage and when it is deleted or ‘lost’ during cell division or replication, it no longer functions as it should.