Leukaemia patient treated with lost cancer drug

A patient has been treated with a lost cancer drug for the first time in 25 years.

A patient diagnosed with relapsed/refractory Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) completed a seven-day course of the drug Bisantrene during a trial held the Sheba Medical Centre in Israel.

Bisantrene was lost after a series of mergers in the early 1990s despite showing promising results in over 40 phase II clinical trials.

The announcement was made by biopharma company Race Oncology after it rescued the drug in 2016.

“This is a major milestone for Race, because it’s the first treatment with Bisantrene since the drug disappeared more than 25 years ago,” said Race Oncology CEO Peter Molloy. 

“Treating the first patient is the culmination of our efforts over the last three years to resurrect this forgotten drug and see it used to save patients’ lives,” said Molloy. 

The patient was the first of 12 to be recruited as part of a trial at the Sheba Medical Centre, which is being led by haematologist Professor Arnon Nagler.

Race Oncology has submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) to conduct a US registration trial and is also pursuing investigator-initiated Phase II trials,

“We sincerely hope that the treatment will assist this patient and those that follow in this important clinical trial,” said Race Oncology chief medical officer Dr Samar Al-Behaisi.

“I am excited that Bisantrene is finding real clinical use again after such a long dormancy,” said Dr Al-Behaisi.