The Medical Marketing International Group PLC has announced that ruthenium compounds could form the foundation of a new kind of cancer treatment.

Current leading therapies carboplatin and cisplatin are no more potent than ruthenium according to the group, although higher maximum tolerated doses are possible.

The ruthenium compounds offer reduced toxicity, a 'novel mechanism of action', no cross resistance and a broader spectrum of activity compared to platinum compounds.

The group's chairman, David Best, said 'although this is early research data, it clearly shows the ruthenium compounds have the potential to become a leading class of cancer drug for the future.

'We had previously expected to develop and take forward to clinical trials the best ruthenium compound. This has been greatly enhanced by the encouraging data and now we have the possibility of having a whole series of future cancer drugs.

'If the preliminary data is confirmed, with regulatory approval, we may be able to 'fast track' the clinical development of some of the compounds, especially in areas where currently available therapies are limited.'