A POTENTIAL new cancer drug based on pioneering research by North-East scientists has performed well in early clinical trials.

The potential drug - known as BMN 673 - is designed to attack tumours that have been left vulnerable because of faulty BRCA genes.

The drug is part of a family of potential new drugs known as PARP inhibitors which were initially developed by scientists at Newcastle University.

A small study involving 70 patients with a range of cancers, including ovarian, peritoneal and breast found that the drug showed "excellent anti-tumour activity", according to a researcher from The Institute of Cancer Research in London and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.

The trial results were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago.

Eleven out of 25 ovarian cancer patients with a BRCA mutation had a positive response to treatment, as did seven out of 18 breast cancer patients with the mutation, while signs of some clinical benefit were seen in several more patients.

BRCA mutations reduce cells ability to repair their DNA and substantially increase the risk of developing a range of cancers, including breast ovarian and prostate.

Recently the film actress Angelina Jolie, who carries the BRCA gene mutation, had a double mastectomy in order to reduce her risk of developing breast cancer.

Nicola Curtin, professor of experimental therapeutics at Newcastle University, described PARP inhibitors as "an exciting class of drug specifically designed to exploit a malfunction in DNA repair that is caused by mutations in BRCA genes."

Study researcher, Professor Johann de Bono from The Royal Marsden said BMN 673 "had excellent anti-tumour activity" and potentially offered more personalised treatment to patients.

The trial was funded by BioMarin Pharmaceutical and a larger trial is now planned.