A group of scientists from the University of Illinois embarks on clinical trials of a new type of antitumor drug that causes cancer cells to self-destruct. And animal studies have already been crowned with success, and now it's time to test the effectiveness of the drug in treating people.

In a new series of experiments, patients suffering from polymorphic glioblastoma and anaplastic astrocytoma - the two most dangerous forms of cancer, localized mainly in the brain, its shell and vessels - will participate. The experimental drug was called PAC-1, the feature of which is that it can easily pass through the blood-brain barrier (a structure like a filter that selectively passes various substances to the brain). The action of PAC-1, which will be tested in conjunction with temozolid (a drug of choice in chemotherapy for brain cancer). Tests are directed to the enzyme procaspase-3. It is present in cancer cells and is in an inactive state, but the activation of this enzyme leads to cell death. It simply begins to collapse from within. Cancer cells have learned to suppress the activity of this enzyme, but PAC-1 "includes" the gene and causes the tumor to "kill itself". Moreover, the drug, which is important, does not affect healthy cells.

As mentioned earlier, the substance has been successfully tested on the culture of human cells, as well as on domestic dogs with naturally occurring osteosarcoma, lymphoma and glioma. During the tests, it was found that the combination of PAC-1 with chemotherapeutic drugs makes it possible to significantly reduce the size of tumors and even get rid of them. In addition, all previous studies showed virtually no complications (including those from the central nervous system), except for small gastrointestinal disorders.