An Australian research team has found indications that a set of drugs for a blood disorder may be able to treat both stomach and bowel cancer.

Investigations will continue after findings that medicines called ‘JAK inhibitors’ may reduce the growth of the common, inflammation-associated forms of cancer.

JAK inhibitors are currently used to treat the cancer-like condition myelofibrosis, and are being investigated in clinical trials for the treatment of conditions including leukaemia, lymphoma, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Dr Emma Stuart from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research made the discovery in collaboration with colleagues Dr Tracy Putoczki and Associate Professor Matthias Ernst.

Their findings have been published in the latest edition of the journal Molecular Cancer Therapeutics.

The new discovery comes from an ongoing investigation into the links between inflammation and cancers of the digestive tract.

“Recently we have begun to unravel the complex signalling that occurs in inflamed tissues, such as when a person has a stomach ulcer or suffers from inflammatory bowel disease, and how this drives cancer development,” Dr Stuart said.

“By understanding the molecules that are involved in promoting the survival and growth of cancer cells, we have been able to identify which of these molecules can be targeted with potential anti-cancer treatments. In this case, we determined that proteins called JAKs are involved in cancer formation in the stomach and bowel. It was exciting to discover that when JAKs were blocked with existing medications (JAK inhibitors), bowel and stomach cancer growth in experimental models was slowed, and many of the cancer cells were killed,” she said.

Associate Professor Ernst said the findings were significant as JAK inhibitors were already available and had shown success in clinical trials, particularly for treating cancer-like blood conditions.

“Our team’s research has uncovered several proteins that could be valuable targets in treating cancers of the digestive tract,” Associate Professor Ernst said.

“The reason this discovery is particularly exciting is clinical trials have already shown that JAK proteins can be safely and successfully inhibited in patients.

“We hope this will expedite bringing our research to possible clinical trials that may improve the outlook for people with stomach and bowel cancer,” he said.