Cytostatic effects of fatty acid synthase inhibition

Abstract

This invention provides a method for treating an individual having a tumor by administering to the individual an inhibitor of fatty acid synthase (FAS) in an amount sufficient to retard growth of cells in the tumor. Preferably, the method of this invention is applied to an individual having a tumor comprising cells which do not overexpress FAS or a tumor comprising cells which are resistant to induction of apoptosis by inhibitors of FAS. Administration of an inhibitor of FAS according to this invention can induce a cellular response equivalent to a genotoxic stress response in the absence of substantial DNA damage. This invention also provides for use of a FAS inhibitor in the preparation of a medicament for treating a tumor in an individual whose tumor exhibits reduced p53 function.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.