Bengaluru: Indian researchers have developed a new chemical compound that could offer hope in treating one of the most difficult forms of breast cancer. The compound, known as ‘diselenide 7’, has shown encouraging results in laboratory and animal studies, slowing tumour growth and preventing the spread of cancer cells.
The focus of the research is triple-negative breast cancer, a type known for being aggressive and resistant to many available treatments. Unlike other breast cancers, it does not respond to therapies that target hormones or specific proteins, making it harder to control. Doctors usually rely on chemotherapy, which often comes with limited success and strong side effects.
The study was carried out jointly by scientists from the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology and IIT Guwahati. The team was led by Asis Bala and Krishna P Bhabak, who designed and synthesised the new compound.
Their work draws on efforts to adapt natural elements for use in medicine.
Tests on mice with breast tumours showed that the compound was able to shrink tumour size, reduce the formation of new blood vessels that feed cancer, and slow down metastasis, the process by which cancer spreads to other parts of the body. Mice treated with the compound also lived longer compared to those that did not receive it.
Scientists found that ‘diselenide 7’ works by blocking two key signalling pathways that cancer cells depend on to grow unchecked. It also creates a type of stress inside the cells, damaging them from within, and lowers inflammation, which is often linked with cancer progression. Together, these effects make it harder for the disease to spread.
While the results are still at an early stage, the study highlights the potential of such compounds as future cancer drugs. Researchers say more work, including human trials, is needed before the compound can be developed into a medicine.
But the findings point towards a promising new direction in the search for treatments for triple-negative breast cancer, which affects many women worldwide and has fewer treatment options than other forms of the disease.
