Cancer Commentary - Caring About Cancer

Diabetes Drug Actos® (pioglitazone) Prevented Cognitive Impairment From Radiation Therapy

by Gloria Gamat on January 16th, 2007

Widely used to treat recurrent brain tumors and to prevent the spread of breast cancer, lung cancer and malignant melanoma to the brain, whole-brain radiation leads to the development of progressive cognitive impairments (affecting memory, language and abstract reasoning) in half of the patients receiving the treatment.

Animal studies from Wake Forest University School of Medicine have found that a common diabetes drug – Actos® (pioglitazone HCl) - prevents the memory and learning problems that cancer patients often experience after whole-brain radiation treatments.

…was based on evidence that the diabetes drug pioglitazone prevents inflammation. The drug activates a specific type of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) that control fat and glucose metabolism, and may be involved in inflammation.

…because the drug shows promise for preventing cognitive impairment, it may allow doctors to give higher doses of radiation.

Currently, while higher doses of radiation have been associated with longer survival, dose is limited because of potential damage to surrounding healthy tissue.

The study, led by Mike Robbins, Ph.D. have been published in the current issue of International Journal of Radiation Oncology-Biology-Physics where the authors reported that rats receiving the diabetes drug pioglitazone (Actos®) before, during and after radiation treatments did not experience cognitive impairment.

Read the full report.

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