On Friday 7th June at 10:00 am, Ms. Sara Verdura Martinez read her doctoral thesis entitled: ‘The Flavonolignan Silibinin in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Relevance’, directed by Dr. Javier A. Menéndez Menéndez and Dr. Joaquim Bosch Barrera.

Thesis abstract

Lung cancer (LC) remains a therapeutically difficult disease to address, despite several decades of clinical improvement. The emergence of treatment resistance phenomena and the limited therapeutic options for patients with brain metastases represent some of the main challenges in the clinical management of this disease. This paper describes for the first time the phytochemical silibinin, a naturally derived compound from milk thistle, as a multifaceted therapeutic agent for the treatment of LC. We have identified some of the molecular mechanisms through which this compound could impede the progression of LC, including: reversal of resistance, potentiation of activity and prevention of unwanted side effects of molecular therapies, as well as blocking key mechanisms in the initiation, colonisation and growth of metastatic cells in the brain. In short, in this work we propose that silibinin or new derived molecules could represent a therapeutic opportunity to improve the prognosis and survival of patients with LC.