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Imatinib Turns a Cancer-Causing Protein Into a Drug Target
From How Cancer Treatment Became Personal: From Chemotherapy to Precision Immunotherapy
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Regulatory
Imatinib Turns a Cancer-Causing Protein Into a Drug Target
Imatinib blocked the abnormal BCR-ABL enzyme driving chronic myeloid leukemia and made molecularly targeted therapy clinically persuasive.
The drug matched a molecular abnormality to an inhibitor designed around its activity, transforming outcomes for many patients with chronic myeloid leukemia. Its success helped establish the model of testing a tumour for a dependency and selecting treatment accordingly, while later resistance showed that even precise targets can evolve.
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