Cancer target selection pressure

Cancer drug discovery does not suffer from a dearth of targets-instead it is in need of a way to prioritize target selection. Now, a team from The Institute of Cancer Research has created a computational algorithm that hones in on targets with strong biological validation that also are predicted to be druggable.¹ The approach may provide a basis for systematically picking cancer targets.

Currently, decisions about cancer target selection are usually based on "gut feeling," said Stephen Friend, president, cofounder and director at Sage Bionetworks and former SVP and franchise head for oncology research at Merck & Co. Inc. "The calculus of how people weigh certain aspects of the decision-am I looking for strong valid biology, or does druggability trump all-is almost done as if we were alchemists."...