A new anti-cancer drug from American Home Products Corp's Wyeth-Ayerst Research unit, which blocks tumors in a novel way, has shown promising results in early stage clinical trials, scientists said on Friday.

A series of initial Phase I trials demonstrated that CCI-779 effectively targeted abnormal cell growth with few adverse effects, a meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology was told.

``Our data suggest that CCI-779 inhibited tumor growth with only mild to moderate side effects over a broad range of doses,'' Dr. Jean-Pierre Armand of the French Institut Gustave Roussy said on Friday.

``These results, although preliminary, suggest CCI-779 shows exciting potential as a cancer treatment of the future.''

The drug works by blocking the action of an enzyme called mTOR which regulates the synthesis of proteins that promote cell division.

AHP has now commenced Phase II trials in Europe and the United States in a range of tumor types.

(From ChinaDaily)