Question

Telomerase is a potential drug target for treating cancer. Therapies in development focus on telomerase inhibition. What is a possible concern if a telomerase inhibitor is administered systemically to a cancer patient?

a. Normal cells such as hepatocytes or neurons would likely be affected by this drug.
b. If the patient is a child, most of their normal cells would likely be affected by this drug.
c. Inhibiting telomerase is likely to be causative of cancer.
d. Inhibiting telomerase would likely increase the lifespan of cancer cells.

Answer 1

The correct answer is a. Normal cells such as hepatocytes or neurons would likely be affected by this drug. Telomerase is a potential drug target for treating cancer. Therapies in development focus on telomerase inhibition. The possible concern if a telomerase inhibitor is administered systemically to a cancer patient is that normal cells such as hepatocytes or neurons would likely be affected by this drug.