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pain researchers have made a discovery that could let future cancer patients avoid chemotherapy鈥檚 worst and most debilitating side effects. The findings are published in the .

Inflammation is one of the body鈥檚 natural reactions to the chemotherapy drug vincristine. researchers and made the discovery while studying how vincristine causes sensory nerves to function abnormally. They thought 鈥榯urning off鈥� this inflammation might reduce the accompanying pain and unpleasant symptoms, including for children with leukaemia.

Dr Starobova said neuropathy was one of the chemotherapy drug鈥檚 most unpleasant and severe side effects, causing tingling and numbness in hands and feet, pain, and muscle weakness leading to limping.

鈥淯nfortunately these symptoms can persist long after treatment,鈥� Dr Starobova said. 鈥淭he only way to ease them is to lower the vincristine dose, but this lowers the treatment鈥檚 effectiveness against the cancer. Where chemotherapy is concerned, neuropathic pain results from immune cells infiltrating the nerves and inflammation running wild.鈥�

鈥淲e found the anti-inflammatory drug anakinra substantially reduced the awful nerve symptoms for which vincristine chemotherapy is known,鈥� Professor Vetter said. 鈥淚mportantly, it did not reduce the effectiveness of the chemo.鈥�

Anakinra is an existing rheumatoid and juvenile arthritis treatment. The researchers plan to test it soon on human chemotherapy patients taking vincristine.

鈥淰incristine is used to treat cervical, brain and lung cancers, leukaemia and non-Hodgkin鈥檚 lymphomas,鈥� Professor Vetter said. She explained that the finding was specific to vincristine and anakinra, although early findings suggested anakinra may help relieve symptoms of some other chemotherapy drugs.

鈥淯nfortunately chemo鈥檚 side effects are sometimes so terrible that people interrupt their treatment or end it, putting them at risk of succumbing to their cancer,鈥� Professor Vetter said.

鈥淩educing the chemo鈥檚 unpleasant symptoms ultimately will save lives and a lot of patient suffering.鈥�

Owen Finegan, Chief Executive of , which part-funded the research, said the choice to test a known and approved drug meant relatively fast translation to clinical use.

鈥淭his discovery will flow through to patients much more quickly than if the researchers had developed a completely new drug,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is likely to bring better treatment for kids with cancers including acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, sarcoma, medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma.

鈥淲e are delighted that these findings 鈥� initiated to help children 鈥� will also benefit adults.鈥�

Claire Bermingham of Lennox Head said her four-year-old son Archer still suffered from his 2019 vincristine treatment for leukaemia 鈥� doctors estimated the side effects would last eight years.

鈥淎rcher has peripheral neuropathy, foot drag, headaches, jaw pain and [an] occasional raspy voice,鈥� Mrs Bermingham said. 鈥淗e can鈥檛 take stairs, hold a pen, write his name, use scissors or do lots of other things children his age can do. People think once treatment is over and the cancer is in remission, that it鈥檚 all over 鈥� that鈥檚 not the reality.鈥�

Mrs Bermingham said she was delighted to hear about the discovery at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience.

鈥淚t鈥檚 great that researchers are prioritising kinder, gentler cancer treatments for children,鈥� she said.

Professor Vetter said inflammation was a natural response in the body to injury or infection, but unchecked it could cause its own issues.

Since the finding, she and Dr Starobova have joined forces with their IMB colleague and inflammation expert Professor Kate Schroder.

鈥淜ate鈥檚 group focuses on inflammasomes 鈥� the molecular machines that trigger the immune response,鈥� Professor Vetter said. 鈥淲orking together allows us to accelerate this research.鈥�

Their next step will focus on how vincristine activates immune cells.

Image caption: Archer Bermingham鈥檚 doctors said the side effects from his 2019 leukaemia treatment could last eight years.