Potential new therapy could soon help people who have cancer-related fatigue, according to ET HealthWorld


Connecticut: Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a debilitating but very common condition that affects patients’ quality of life during treatment. For the cluster of symptoms that make up CRF, there is currently no effective drug treatment.

In a new study led by researchers at the Yale Cancer Center at Yale School of Medicine, the team found that a metabolism-targeting drug called dichloroacetate (DCA) helped reduce CRF in mice, without interfering with cancer treatment. . These findings pave the way for future CRF research that may someday lead to a new therapy for patients.

The results were published October 2 in the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism.

“This study identifies dichloroacetate, an activator of glucose oxidation, as the first intervention, and specifically the first metabolism-focused intervention, to prevent the entire syndrome of cancer-related fatigue in a preclinical model,” said senior author Rachel Perry. Who is a member of the Yale Cancer Center.

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Researchers used a tumor-bearing mouse model to investigate the effectiveness of DCA in treating cancer-related fatigue for patients suffering from melanoma.

The group found that DCA did not affect the rate of tumor growth or compromise the effectiveness of immunotherapy or chemotherapy in two mouse cancer models. DCA also significantly preserved physical function and motivation in mice with late-stage tumors.

The data suggest that DCA treatment may have several positive effects, including reducing oxidative stress in the muscle tissue of tumor-bearing mice. The researchers said DCA could be a practice-changing approach in the future when used as adjunctive therapy to treat cancer-related fatigue.

Perry said, “We hope this research will lead to future clinical trials using dichloroacetate – an FDA-approved drug for another indication (lactic acidosis) – to treat the debilitating syndrome of cancer-related fatigue. “Will provide the basis for the tests.” Assistant Professor of Medicine (Endocrinology) and Cellular and Molecular Physiology at Yale School of Medicine.

  • Published on October 9, 2023 at 12:49 PM IST

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