Featured Interview, page-2

From the interview:

Many cancers exploit our bodies’ normal immune-dampening system by making very high levels of the bioactive sphingolipid metabolite, sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), effectively blocking the ability of the body to mount inflammatory and immune responses against cancer cell growth. S1P is produced in the plasma membrane of all cells and is a critical regulator that interacts with a variety of receptors within the cell and on the cell surface. Each of those receptors controls a different mechanism, such as cell growth or cell migration. In cancer cells, this “master switch” is over-expressed. Because S1P signaling inhibits cell death, this mechanism helps keep cancer cells growing.

For this reason, S1P is an obvious target for anti-cancer drugs. However, until now, researchers have been unable to inhibit it selectively in cancer cells. When healthy cells are also affected, these drugs are too toxic to be of use. Veyonda is the first and only drug that inhibits S1P only in cancer cells.