A medication for high blood pressure could revolutionize cancer treatment.

A team of researchers from Dartmouth Cancer Center has published a study in The Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, demonstrating that telmisartan, approved by the FDA for hypertension, can enhance the effects of the cancer drug olaparib.

Olaparib, a PARP inhibitor, is particularly effective in tumors with mutations in the BRCA gene, but many tumors do not respond to this treatment. Telmisartan changes this dynamic, causing DNA damage to the tumors and activating the production of type I interferons, which help the immune system attack cancer cells. The anticancer effect was observed exclusively with telmisartan, not with other drugs in the same class.

Two clinical studies are already underway, one for metastatic prostate cancer and another for platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. Researchers hope that this combination will help patients who do not respond to existing therapies and overcome treatment resistance. Telmisartan, being well-tolerated and inexpensive, could become a valuable tool in oncology.