Through a genomic screening method known as CRISPR/CAS9 screening, Massey scientists—led by Anthony Faber and Jennifer Koblinski—identified a specific enzyme called UBA1 that revealed itself as an ideal therapeutic target in triple negative breast cancer. Using a novel UBA-inhibiting drug called TAK-243, they blocked the cellular function of UBA1 and effectively killed cancer cells in patient-derived breast tumors in mice.
In patients with high-risk HER2-positive breast cancer, post-surgery, or adjuvant, treatment with trastuzumab emtansine, also referred to as T-DM1) reduced the long-term risk of death or invasive disease by 46% and improved survival compared to trastuzumab alone, according to the final results of the phase III KATHERINE clinical trial led by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center.
