Men with deadly prostate tumours ‘survive longer when taking drug for treating breast and ovarian cancer’

MEN with deadly prostate tumours survive longer when taking a drug used to treat breast and ovarian cancer, experts say.

They found olaparib, sold as Lynparza, froze the disease for almost seven and a half months.

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That is more than twice as long as hormone therapies currently used.

It also lacks the worst side effects of chemotherapy.

But the drug only works for men with 15 faulty DNA repair genes.

Scientists say the trial shows genomic testing is crucial. And they hope it will lead to tailored prostate treatments.

The groundbreaking findings are set to foreshadow the licence of the first personalised drug for prostate cancer in the US and in Europe.

Prof Johann de Bono, of The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said: It is exciting to see a drug already extending lives of women show such benefits in prostate cancer.”

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"I cannot wait to see this drug start reaching men who could benefit from it on the NHS - hopefully in the next couple of years."

"Next, we will be assessing how we can combine olaparib with other treatments, which could help men with prostate cancer and faulty DNA repair genes live even longer."

Around 11,700 men diagnosed with prostate cancer die each year in the UK.

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