Dr. O'Neil on Stemness Inhibitors for CRC Treatment

Bert O’Neil, MD, the Joseph W. and Jackie J. Cusick Professor of Oncology, professor of medicine, and director of the Phase I and Gastrointestinal Oncology Programs at Indiana University, discusses the potential for stemness inhibitors as a treatment for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

Stemness inhibitors are one of the advances that are really exciting in the field, O'Neil says. This addresses the potential of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, he adds. Researchers also have conducted a study with the stemness inhibitor napabucasin (BBI-608) in CRC where there seemed to be some signs of preliminary activity. This is currently now in an ongoing phase III study.

There have been other inhibitors being developed of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, O'Neil says, adding that this is a novel concept for this landscape.