Hidden pocket reveals new way to target prostate cancer's 'undruggable' ERG protein

Article excerpt

In the United States, prostate cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related disease and death in men. About half of prostate cancer cases in patients of European ancestry have a gene rearrangement in which the genes TMPRSS2 and ERG are fused together. This causes the ERG protein to be turned on, increasing the growth and migration of tumor cells. However, ERG has been considered undruggable because it lacks the usual pockets that a drug can bind to.