Computational drug repositioning identifies statins as a modifier of prognostic genetic expression signatures and metastatic behavior in melanoma.

Despite advances in melanoma treatment, more than 70% of patients with distant metastasis die within 5 years. Proactive treatment of early melanoma to prevent metastasis could save lives and reduce overall healthcare costs. Currently, there are no treatments specifically designed to prevent early melanoma from progressing to metastasis. We used the Connectivity Map (cMap) to conduct an in silico drug screen and identified HMGCR inhibitors (statins) as a drug class that might prevent melanoma metastasis.

Source: Journal of Investigative Dermatology - January 5, 2021 Category: Dermatology Authors: Wesley Y. Yu, Sheena T. Hill, E. Ricky Chan, John J. Pink, Kevin Cooper, Sancy Leachman, Amanda W. Lund, Rajan Kulkarni, Jeremy S. Bordeaux Tags: Original Article Source Type: research