GC Green Cross Wellbeing "Confirmed Anti-Cachexia Effect of Treatment for Cancer-Induced General Weakness"

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] GC Green Cross Wellbeing's new drug candidate for treating cancer cachexia, a severe systemic wasting caused by cancer, 'GCWB204,' has shown an inhibitory effect on muscle atrophy in a study.

GC Green Cross Wellbeing announced on the 8th that recent research results on GCWB204 were published in the SCI-level international journal "Environmental Research and Public Health."

This paper discusses the inhibitory effects and mechanisms of the drug on muscle atrophy. Professor Kyuwon Bae from Sookmyung Women's University College of Pharmacy and the GC Green Cross Wellbeing research team jointly participated.

The study was conducted by applying GCWB204 to a muscle atrophy cell model induced by dexamethasone, a synthetic steroid hormone. The results showed that the expression of the muscle atrophy protein 'Myosin heavy chain (MHC),' which decreases due to dexamethasone, was normalized in cells treated with GCWB204.

Additionally, GCWB204 increased the expression of 'PGC1α,' a regulator of cellular energy metabolism, by about 37% compared to the placebo group, promoting the production of energy sources necessary for muscle cells.

GC Green Cross Wellbeing has currently completed Phase 2 clinical trials of GCWB204 in Europe targeting patients with gastrointestinal cancer and non-small cell lung cancer. The clinical results are expected to be announced within the first half of this year.

Hyejung Han, head of the GC Green Cross Wellbeing research institute, said, "So far, we have verified the cachexia improvement efficacy of GCWB204 in various muscle atrophy models and revealed the main mechanisms. Through this study, which clarified not only muscle atrophy recovery but also muscle function enhancement effects, we expect increased potential for expanding its use as a treatment for various chronic diseases accompanied by muscle atrophy, such as tuberculosis, AIDS, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, beyond cancer cachexia."

Cancer cachexia is a disease characterized by continuous weight loss and muscle loss leading to metabolic imbalance due to cancer or anticancer drug use. Between 50% and 80% of all cancer patients are affected by cancer cachexia, and about 20% of them die from it.