Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a highly aggressive cancer with poor treatment outcomes, primarily treated with the drug combination Gemcitabine and Cisplatin (GEM/CIS), which faces issues of low response rates and rapid drug resistance.
In this study, researchers developed GEM/CIS-resistant CCA cell lines and found these resistant cells have a vulnerability to SMAC mimetics, particularly LCL161 and Birinapant, linked to the upregulation of the cIAP2 protein.
Combining LCL161 with GEM/CIS not only enhanced the effectiveness of the treatment in resistant CCA models but also prevented the development of further drug resistance, suggesting a potential new therapeutic strategy for improving CCA