Image credit : Illustrative Image

Coimbatore : A new drug, approved by Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has become a boon to those who no longer respond to treatment with radioactive iodine in thyroid and liver cancers, a senior city oncologist, Dr P Guhan said Tuesday.

Thyroid cancer is one of the few cancers that has increased in incidence rates over recent year and occurs in all age group from children through seniors, Dr Guhan, Director, Sri Ramakrishna Institute of Oncology and Research told reporters here.

Treatment for thyroid cancer include surgery, radioactive iodine treatment, external radiation therapy and targeted therapy, with most cases patients undergoing surgery to remove most of the thyroid gland, he said

The DCGI approved Lenvatinib, a Noval Tyrosine Kinase inhibitor for use in patients who no longer respond to treatment with radioactive iodine, has shown superior survival benefits that the current systemic option treatment options due to its unique mechanism of action, Guhan said.

Similarly, the drug is beneficial for those suffering from liver cancer, he said.

Stating that the treatment options may be to either cure the cancer or improve survival based on the stage of the cancer, he said that the two options for liver cancer was either surgery or transplant.

The new drug is useful for liver cancer patients, which acted on multiple receptors and has more pronounced action on the tumour cell, he said.