Oasmia Pharmaceutical AB has announced the development of a new anti-cancer drug that the company is calling OAS-19. Oasmia expects to start clinical trials on OAS-19 in 2014.
OAS-19, according to Oasmia, is "the first oncology product candidate to apply a dual cytostatic agent encapsulation and release mechanism in one infusion." If reading that sentence just gave you a mild headache, then let's break down what the company is actually saying.
A cytostatic agent is a drug that attacks cancerous tumor cells. Unfortunately, it also attacks healthy cells at the same time. One of the main areas of research in cancer drugs right now involves ways to improve drug targeting. For example, instead of injecting a chemotherapy treatment into the whole body and hoping that some of it hits the cancer cells, pharmaceutical companies want to target the drug directly at the tumor.
Oasmia has developed a secret sauce, or "patented delivery system," that it calls XR-17. In general, XR-17 allows Oasmia to combine agents within a structure called a micelle.
A micelle, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's Berkeley Lab, is a spherical soap-like structure that is about 15 nanometers in diameter. Many micelles are coated with amphiphilic co-polymers, which have both water-soluble and fat-soluble properties.
A micelle targets a particular spot on the body, allowing drugs that don't dissolve easily to be delivered directly to tumor cells. Peptide activities at the target site then degrade the polymers that encapsulate the micelle, allowing the medication to be released directly into the targeted cells.
OAS-19 can deliver combination therapy in a single infusion. Instead of giving a patient two separate treatments with a cytostatic agent, OAS-19 can combine two substances within a single drug delivery vehicle, or micelle.
Oasmia hopes that OAS-19 and drugs like it will help humanity to fight cancer. Of course, the drug will also help Oasmia to capitalize on the $8 billion combination therapy market.
"Our aim is not only to improve many current combination therapies, but to provide a more efficient and safer treatment alternative," said Julian Aleksov, Oasmia's CEO. "Moreover, OAS-19 might also offer new therapeutic options for indications or patient populations that are not considered for combination therapy today."
Edited by
Rory J. Thompson
