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Scientists have developed a technique that uses a library of DNA taken from organs in which tumors can form and harnesses the body's immune response to create a vaccine designed to treat cancer.
In a study published in the journal Nature Medicine on Sunday, researchers from Britain and the United States said that in early tests in mice with prostate cancer, their experimental vaccine was able to shrink tumors, suggesting it could be developed in future into a treatment for cancer patients.
"Using the immune system to treat cancer is a very exciting area at the moment," Alan Melcher of Leeds University, who co-led the study, said in an interview. "What we've done is to develop a new approach which builds on a promising foundation."
Recent studies suggest naked mole-rat cells have anti-tumor capabilities not found in the cells of other rodents or humans. To date, no cancer has ever been detected in a naked mole-rat, which can live for more than 30 years. That lifespan is seven to eight times longer than an average mouse, which is similar in size to the naked mole-rat, yet lives for only about four years.
The University of Liverpool scientists recently published the first draft of the complete genome of the naked mole-rat, and say their research revealed the small mammal's DNA shares similarities with human DNA. They say they want to use the new findings to gain a better understanding of the naked mole-rat's longevity, and its resistance to chronic diseases associated with aging, particularly cancer.
The naked mole-rat is native to the deserts of East Africa. It has no sensation of pain in its skin, and a low metabolic rate allows the tiny rodent species to thrive underground despite a limited oxygen supply.
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FYI this is a debatable theory, not fact. When cells become old or damaged, they die (ie on their own, not killed by the immune system) and are replaced with new cells. But sometimes DNA of a cell can become damaged or changed, producing mutations that affect normal cell growth and division. When this happens, cells do not die when they should and new cells form when the body does not need them.Makes sense because everybody naturally has cancerous cells in their bodies, but their immune systems attacks and kills them. Its only when the immune system fails to kill them and they grow out of control into detectable levels do we call it "having cancer".
Correct. The word "vaccine" was used improperly in the article. But you can call it whatever you want if it worksI don't know if you can really vaccinate against it (to me a vaccine sounds more like prevention of infection from a bacteria or virus).
Actually, there are vaccines against the infection that causes cancer. Net effect is the same, but a significant differenceWonderful, if true. And since there are vaccines against cervical cancer it sounds doable.
An engineered virus, injected into the blood, can selectively target cancer cells throughout the body in what researchers have labelled a medical first. The virus attacked only tumours, leaving the healthy tissue alone, in a small trial on 23 patients, according to the journal Nature. Researchers said the findings could one day "truly transform" therapies. Cancer specialists said using viruses showed "real promise". Using viruses to attack cancers is not a new concept, but they have needed to be injected directly into tumours in order to evade the immune system.
Smallpox to cancer
Scientists modified the vaccinia virus, which is more famous for being used to develop a smallpox vaccine. The virus, named JX-594, is dependent upon a chemical pathway, common in some cancers, in order to replicate. It was injected at different doses into the blood of 23 patients with cancers which had spread to multiple organs in the body. In the eight patients receiving the highest dose, seven had the virus replicating in their tumours, but not in healthy tissue. Prof John Bell, lead researcher and from the University of Ottawa, said: "We are very excited because this is the first time in medical history that a viral therapy has been shown to consistently and selectively replicate in cancer tissue after intravenous infusion in humans.
"Intravenous delivery is crucial for cancer treatment because it allows us to target tumours throughout the body as opposed to just those that we can directly inject." Infection prevented further tumour growth in six patients for a time. However, the virus did not cure cancer. Patients were given only one dose of the virus as the trial was designed to test the safety of the virus. It is thought that the virus could be used to deliver treatments directly to cancerous cells in high concentrations. Prof Bell acknowledges that the research is still in the very early stages, but he said: "I believe that some day, viruses and other biological therapies could truly transform our approach for treating cancer."
Cancer Research UK's Prof Nick Lemoine, also director of Barts Cancer Institute, said: "Viruses that multiply in just tumour cells - avoiding healthy cells - are showing real promise as a new biological approach to target hard-to-treat cancers. "This new study is important because it shows that a virus previously used safely to vaccinate against smallpox in millions of people can now be modified to reach cancers through the bloodstream - even after cancer has spread widely through the patient's body. "It is particularly encouraging that responses were seen even in tumours like mesothelioma, a cancer which can be particularly hard to treat."
BBC News - 'Anti-cancer virus' shows promise
As I understand, cancer is difficult to "cure" because it is caused by mutations of certain genes in our cells. I forget the specific names, but each cell has a gene on its DNA that tells it to stop multiplying. A cancerous cell is one in which that gene no longer activates.
I don't know if you can really vaccinate against it (to me a vaccine sounds more like prevention of infection from a bacteria or virus). But if you develop a type of gene therapy or get the body to attack cancerous cells and recognize them, that would definitely serve the same function.
Cancer killed half my grandparents. Another had it but survived because it was caught early. It's in my blood to get it, so I hope a cure comes around for the sake of my family and everyone else who may get afflicted with it.
Wonderful, if true. And since there are vaccines against cervical cancer it sounds doable.
I wonder if this means we will be allowed to smoke in bars again?
The idea of using viruses to fight cancer has interested scientists for decades. That interest has intensified as recent advances in genetic engineering have made it possible to custom design viruses that target cancer tumors.
The experimental viral therapy was administered in a single intravenous treatment in five dose strengths to 23 patients with a variety of advanced cancers. Scientists, including teams from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, the University of Ottawa, and the private biotechnology company, Jennerex, say the engineered virus, called JX-954, replicated itself in the patient's tumors, but left normal, healthy tissues unaffected in seven of the eight patients in the two highest-dose groups.
Six of the patients in these high-dose groups saw their tumors stabilize or shrink. None of the patients experienced any side effects worse than mild-to-moderate flu-like symptoms that lasted for less than one day. The researchers say viral therapies like JX-954 stand apart from other cancer treatments because they can attack tumors in multiple ways, they can be customized easily for different types of cancer, and they cause minimal side effects.
The Canadian scientists say much more research is needed, but they predict that the early successes with intravenous viral therapy will lead to a whole new generation of targeted cancer treatments. The new study is published in the journal, Nature.
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It is truly a evil that must be wiped from the face of the earth.A trial of a new cancer drug, which accurately targets tumours, has been so successful it has been stopped early. Doctors at London's Royal Marsden Hospital gave prostate cancer patients a powerful alpha radiation drug and found that they lived longer, and experienced less pain and side effects. The medics then stopped the trial of 922 people, saying it was unethical not to offer all of them the treatment. Lead researcher Dr Chris Parker said it was "a significant step forward". Cancer Research UK said it was a very important and promising discovery.
Radiation has been used to treat tumours for more than a century. It damages the genetic code inside cancerous cells. Alpha particles are the big, bulky, bruisers of the radiation world. It is a barrage of helium nuclei, which are far bigger than beta radiation, a stream of electrons, or gamma waves. Dr Parker told the BBC: "It's more damaging. It takes one, two, three hits to kill a cancer cell compared with thousands of hits for beta particles." Alpha particles also do less damage to surrounding tissue. He added: "They have such a tiny range, a few millionths of a metre. So we can be sure that the damage is being done where it should be."
In 90% of patients with advanced prostate cancer, the tumour will have spread to the bone. At this stage there are no treatments which affect survival. The study looked at patients with these secondary cancers, as the source of radiation - radium-223 chloride - acts like calcium and sticks to bone. Half were given the radium-223 chloride drug alongside traditional chemotherapy, while the other patients received chemotherapy and a dummy pill. The death rate was 30% lower in the group taking radium-223. Those patients survived for 14 months on average compared to 11 months in the dummy group. The trial was abandoned as "it would have been unethical not to offer the active treatment to those taking placebo", said Dr Parker. He added: "I think it will be a significant step forward for cancer patients".
Researchers also said the treatment was safe. Curiously there were fewer side-effects in the group taking the treatment than those taking the dummy medicine. The findings are being presented at the European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress but they have not yet been peer-reviewed by other academics. Prof Gillies McKenna, Cancer Research UK's radiotherapy expert and director of the Gray Institute for Radiation Oncology and Biology, said: "This appears to be an important study using a highly targeted form of radiation to treat prostate cancer that has spread to the bones. "This research looks very promising and could be an important addition to approaches available to treat secondary tumours - and should be investigated further."
BBC News - Alpha radiation treats prostate cancers
YERVOYAn immunotherapy drug called ipilimumab, or Yervoy, made by Bristol-Myers Squibb, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in March as the first drug to help advanced melanoma patients live longer.
Advanced Prostate Cancer Treatment | Provenge.comAnd last April, the FDA approved Dendreon Corp's Provenge, a therapeutic vaccine designed to stimulate the immune system to attack prostate cancer.
PROVENGE is made from your own immune cells. Your cells will be collected at a cell collection center approximately 3 days before each scheduled infusion of PROVENGE. There can be risks associated with the cell collection process, which you should discuss with your doctor before deciding to begin treatment with PROVENGE.
PROVENGE can cause serious reactions. In controlled clinical trials for the treatment of prostate cancer, serious reactions reported in patients in the PROVENGE group include reactions resulting from the infusion of the drug, which occurred within 1 day of infusion, and strokes. Severe infusion reactions included chills, fever, fatigue, weakness, breathing problems (shortness of breath, decreased oxygen level, and wheezing), dizziness, headache, high blood pressure, muscle ache, nausea, and vomiting. Tell your doctor right away if you have breathing problems, chest pains, racing heart or irregular heartbeats, dizziness, nausea, or vomiting after getting PROVENGE because any of these may be signs of heart or lung problems
