In the United States, a cure for cancer has been developed, on which scientists have high hopes: it has been created for more than 25 years

OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center announced the first cancer drug developed entirely in Oklahoma and without the help of a pharmaceutical company. Soon it will be tested on humans for the first time. Read more about the innovation told the publication The Oklahoman.

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The drug, called OK-1, has been in development for over 25 years and was created by Dr. Doris Benbrook, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the California State University College of Medicine.

Clinical trials are now to begin at OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center, during which the drug will be given to women with advanced ovarian, endometrial, and cervical cancers.

“This drug is currently not available anywhere in the world,” Benbrook said. “We believe it has great potential for treating cancer without causing toxic side effects.”

She said her career goal was to develop new treatments for cancer patients that could kill cancer cells without damaging healthy cells or causing other side effects.

According to Benbrook, preclinical studies have shown that OK-1 can do this and even prevent cancer.

“Because I went through this process and faced many obstacles, I was greatly helped by the cooperation of Oklahoma experts, students and fellows who worked on this project, as well as the infrastructure at the Cancer Center,” she explained.

How OK-1 works

OK-1 is derived from a naturally occurring vitamin A compound that the body uses to make retinoic acid.

Some types of retinoic acid and its synthetic versions, called retinoids, can be used to treat cancer, such as leukemia, but they are very toxic.

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Benbrook worked with a colleague to change the chemical structure of the drug and study its effect on cancer cells compared to healthy cells.

"Because we've changed the structure of retinoic acid so much, OK-1 doesn't work like retinoic acid," Benbrook explained.

The drug kills cancer cells by destroying one of the defense mechanisms that cells use to survive.

Who will benefit from this

The drug, which is given in capsule form, could make all the difference for cancer patients.

Dr. Kathleen Moore, who will lead the clinical trials, said OK-1 is sort of the "Holy Grail".

“This is the start of a really exciting study,” she said.

In preclinical models, researchers have found that OK-1 is effective in shrinking tumors without toxicity, and this sets it apart from other drugs.

It works well in combination with other cancer drugs, Moore says, making both drugs more effective than either alone.

Dena Newlan, a cancer patient at OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center, knows firsthand how brutal the side effects of cancer treatment can be.

She is in the middle of a separate clinical trial for a drug for stage four ovarian cancer.

“Look at me, I don't look sick,” she said. “That means I didn’t experience many of the side effects they were talking about.”

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Among its side effects was aphasia, a condition in which a person has trouble speaking, communicating, or understanding other people. This is commonly seen in patients who have had a stroke.

“Drugs, while they have benefits, also have a downside,” Newlan said.

What's next

In phase 1 trials due to begin soon, scientists will determine the correct dose of OK-1.

Then, in later trials, OK-1 will be tested in combination with other cancer drugs.

Benbrook plans to test OK-1 in an ovarian cancer prevention trial through the Cancer Prevention Clinical Trials Network.

If proven effective in preventing cancer, the drug could be given to women with a genetic predisposition to cancer, such as those with a BRCA gene mutation. Not all women with these gene mutations will develop cancer, but they are at higher risk for breast or ovarian cancer.

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