Cancer pill could be breakthrough against heart failure

In what could offer a holy grail cure, a cancer pill is showing promise in treating millions of patients with heart problems, by halting or even reversing the risk of the fatal disease.

Heart cells are known to destroy themselves when under stress in a process referred to as autophagy.

But now drugs known as HDAC inhibitors have stopped the process in mice, according to a team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre in Dallas.

“This is exciting and it is great that we can show actual regression of changes to the heart,” the Daily Express quoted Dr Charles Knight, consultant cardiologist and honorary secretary of the British Cardiovascular Society as saying.

“It shows that heart function can ­actually be restored after the damage and that is very interesting.”

During trials, researchers gave the drug to mice after inducing them to have heart ­failure. Dr Joseph Hill, chief of cardiology at Southwestern Medical Centre, said, “The heart decreased back to near its ­normal size, and heart function that had previously been declining went back to normal. That is a powerful observation where disease regression, not just disease prevention, was seen,” he added.