Peptide therapy is a form of treatment that uses peptides, which are short chains of amino acids, to target and treat conditions like cancer. Peptides are involved in many important biological processes and have a range of functions, including acting as signals between cells, hormones, and neurotransmitters.
Several types of peptides have been developed and studied as treatments for different forms of cancer, and they act through various mechanisms. Some have anti-cancer effects directly by impacting processes like cell growth, survival, and spread of cancer cells, while others act on the immune system to bolster the body's natural defenses against cancer.
Some key ways that peptide-based therapies may fight cancer include:
- Inducing apoptosis (programmed cell death) of cancer cells
- Inhibiting angiogenesis (the development of new blood vessels that feed tumors)
- Blocking key cancer-related cell signaling pathways
- Enhancing anti-tumor immunity by activating immune cells like T cells and natural killer (NK) cells
Research has studied peptide therapies for cancers including brain, breast, prostate, pancreatic, lung, and blood cancers, among others. Certain peptides have even shown promise against difficult to treat metastatic or drug-resistant cancers in preclinical studies.
Some widely studied peptide treatments for cancer include:
- Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists: These drugs switch off LHRH receptors on some cancer cells, cutting off signals that support tumor growth. They treat prostate, ovarian, breast and other hormonally-influenced cancers.
*Bombesin peptide conjugates: Bombesin binds to receptors on many cancer cells, allowing the drug to selectively target tumor cells, including lung, breast, ovarian, prostate and gastrointestinal cancers.
Anti-angiogenic peptides: These peptides block proteins that tumors need to grow blood vessels to supply themselves with nutrients. This starves tumors and prevents growth and spread.
Immunostimulatory peptides: These activate immune cells, provoking anti-tumor immunity. Some peptides act as immune adjuvants, while others more directly stimulate T cells, NK cells, dendritic cells and more that can recognize and attack cancer.
Peptide therapy offers many potential
benefits as a cancer treatment. Key upsides include:
- High potency and target selectivity, homing in on cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue
- Ability to target specific molecular pathways involved in cancer
- Overcoming treatment resistance
- Good safety profile with low toxicity
- Potential for combination with other therapies like chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy
- Ease of modification for enhanced tumor-targeting abilities
Various peptide treatments are already FDA approved or are in clinical trials. Ongoing research is working to identify optimal peptides, improve their tumor-targeting capabilities, understand combination approaches, and expand evidence on their efficacy against different cancer types and stages.
While still an emerging therapy, peptide-based treatment is a promising therapeutic strategy against cancer. If you or a loved one are facing cancer and want to learn more about peptide therapy options, the experts at
Hormone Harmony Clinic provide compassionate consultations and personalized treatment plans to fight cancer.
() to see how peptide therapy may help beat your cancer.
