Existing Glaucoma Drugs May Hold Potential Against Aggressive Cancer Cells, ICR Study Finds

Banner image: melanoma cells dividing. Credit: Paul J.Smith and Rachel Errington, Wellcome Collection.

(IN BRIEF) Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London have identified features in some aggressive cancer cells that may make them vulnerable to ROCK inhibitors, a group of drugs already used to treat glaucoma. The research found relevant markers in breast cancer, melanoma and acute myeloid leukaemia. These included faulty E-Cadherin in epithelial tumours, rounded cell shape and high NFKB activity in melanoma-type tumours, and specific gene alterations in AML. The team validated the findings using drug sensitivity data, laboratory experiments, patient tumour samples and mouse studies. The research was published in iScience. Because ROCK inhibitors are already approved for glaucoma, the researchers hope the findings could support future cancer clinical trials and help identify which patients are most likely to respond.

(PRESS RELEASE) LONDON, 6-Aug-2026 — /EuropaWire/ — Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, have identified weaknesses in certain cancer cells that may make them vulnerable to a group of medicines already used to treat glaucoma.

The findings, observed in breast cancer, melanoma and acute myeloid leukaemia, could help pave the way for future clinical trials testing these drugs across a range of cancers.

The research focuses on cancer cells that become aggressive and spread through the body, causing advanced disease that is difficult to treat.

These cells rely on a molecule called Rho kinase, or ROCK, which helps keep the internal scaffolding of cells tense.

By maintaining this tension, ROCK enables cells to contract, become rounder and generate the force needed to squeeze through surrounding tissue.

The research team set out to identify markers that could show which cancers are most likely to respond to drugs that block ROCK.

ROCK inhibitors are already used by the NHS to treat glaucoma.

In the eye, ROCK helps control the mesh-like network of cells through which fluid drains.

When this mesh becomes too tense and tightly packed, fluid can build up and increase pressure in the eye.

ROCK inhibitors relax the mesh, helping fluid drain more effectively.

The study was funded by The Institute of Cancer Research, Breast Cancer Now, Barts Charity, Cancer Research UK, Worldwide Cancer Research and UK Research and Innovation.

The findings were published in the journal iScience.

Researchers working in the Breast Cancer Now Toby Robins Research Centre at the ICR analysed a publicly available drug sensitivity database containing previous studies of hundreds of cell populations from many different cancer types.

The database records how these cells respond to specific drugs.

Across the cancer types analysed, the team found that some cell populations responded to ROCK inhibitors, while others did not.

The researchers then looked for patterns that distinguished the responsive cells from the non-responsive ones.

They validated these patterns in laboratory experiments, patient tumour samples and studies in mice.

In epithelial solid tumours, such as breast cancer, cells that responded to ROCK inhibitors showed problems with a gene called E-Cadherin.

In non-epithelial solid tumours, such as melanoma, responsive cells tended to have a rounder shape and high activity in NFKB, a signalling pathway linked to tumour growth, spread and inflammation.

The researchers also examined whether similar markers could be found in blood cancers.

In acute myeloid leukaemia, cells that responded well to ROCK inhibition carried a specific subset of gene alterations.

Across all tumour types studied, the cancer cells that responded better to ROCK inhibitors shared features linked to genes controlling cell identity and cell division.

The researchers hope that, in future, cancer biopsies could be used to identify patients who may benefit from ROCK inhibitors.

Relevant indicators could include specific gene patterns, a rounded cancer cell shape, or the presence of aggressive cells in the invasive border region of a tumour.

Because ROCK inhibitors are already used safely for glaucoma, the researchers hope clinical trials in cancer patients could begin soon.

Professor Victoria Sanz Moreno, Professor of Cancer Cell and Metastasis Biology at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and lead author of the study, said some cancers are particularly aggressive and become very difficult to treat once they spread.

She said identifying and stopping the ability of these cancers to move around the body is central to keeping more people living well with cancer.

Professor Sanz Moreno said the research has identified a shared weakness in aggressive cancer cells that could potentially be targeted across many cancer types, regardless of where they originate in the body.

She said the team confirmed its findings in aggressive cancers including breast cancer, melanoma and acute myeloid leukaemia, and believes the molecular fingerprint identified may apply to many more cancer types.

She added that the existence of an approved treatment already used safely in some patients is encouraging, as it could potentially be adapted for cancer treatment.

Professor Sanz Moreno said the work demonstrates the value of discovery science and of understanding the biology of cancer cells and their surrounding ecosystem.

Jaume Barcelo, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, now based at the Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary University of London, and first author of the study, said aggressive cancer cells were already known to rely on the ROCK molecule.

However, until now, researchers did not know which cancer patients were most likely to respond to ROCK-targeting drugs.

He said the study identified a specific pattern of features that appears consistent across many cancer types and could help match the right patients to this treatment.

Barcelo said the next stage of research will be to test how ROCK inhibitors work in combination with other cancer treatments in order to maximise patient benefit.

He added that, because ROCK inhibitors are already approved for glaucoma, the findings may help move the drugs into cancer clinical trials in the near future.

Dr Simon Vincent, Chief Scientific Officer at Breast Cancer Now, said that with around 11,500 women dying from breast cancer every year in the UK, research into more effective treatment options remains vital.

He said the study helps lay the foundation for understanding which patients with certain cancers, including breast cancer, may benefit most from existing drugs.

Dr Vincent noted that finding new uses for treatments already known to be safe can be easier and faster than developing new cancer medicines from the beginning.

He added that it is encouraging that these drugs may be particularly effective against cancer cells more likely to spread and resist treatment.

While the research remains at an early stage and clinical trials are still needed, Dr Vincent said it represents an important step toward more personalised breast cancer treatments in the future.

Through the study, scientists at the ICR and their collaborators have identified a potential route for repurposing glaucoma drugs against aggressive cancers, using molecular and cellular markers to guide patient selection and support future personalised treatment strategies.

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SOURCE: The Institute of Cancer Research