Researchers discover new targets for approved cancer drug
(PHYSorg.com Chemistry)

Developing new drugs to treat cancer can be a painstaking process taking over a decade from start to Food and Drug Administration approval. Scientists are trying to develop innovative strategies to identify and test new drugs quicker and more efficiently. A team of researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center used cellular drug screening, functional proteomics and computer-based modeling to determine whether drugs with well-known targets may be repurposed for use against other biological targets. They found that an FDA approved drug for non-small cell lung cancer called ceritinib has anti-cancer activity against previously unknown targets. Their results were published today in the journal, Nature Chemical Biology.