Altered viruses found to attack cancer cells
As a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, I hope you read the following with the same optimism and hope that I did!
from the Cincinnati Enquirer
Research at Children's holds hope for solid-tumor remedy
Tweaking a cold sore virus' genetic makeup didn't just result in it killing two different types of cancer cells, new research from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center shows.
Researchers also engineered the virus to prevent the tumors from "recruiting" certain chemicals that cancers use to grow blood vessels and other support structures.
The engineered virus did the job without harming surrounding healthy tissues, researchers said.
The study, released today in the journal Cancer Research, looked at an engineered virus' effect on neuroblastoma and peripheral nerve-sheath tumors.
Both are notoriously stubborn solid tumors that affect children.
Researchers genetically armed an engineered herpes simplex virus to block the action of proteins that help cancer cells form invasive tumors.
The virus, called rQT3, both killed cancer cells and reduced the development of new blood vessels that feed cancerous tumors.
Researchers studied the virus' actions in both human and animal cancer tissue samples.
It's hard to treat solid tumors with conventional chemotherapy and radiation without harming surrounding healthy tissue, said Timothy Cripe, a pediatric cancer specialist and lead author of the study.
The results support more research on using engineered viruses to fight cancer, he said.
Previous research has shown genetically engineered viruses to be effective at slowing the growth of breast, cervical, ovarian and brain cancers in animals.
Scientists began exploring the use of viruses as a cancer therapy in the 1950s, Cripe said, but genetic engineering and viral biology advances allow for the concept to take hold.
Neuroblastoma is a solid-tumor cancer that develops in nerve tissue. It's usually found in children younger than 5.
For children under 2, or those diagnosed with a single cancerous mass, surgery and chemotherapy are usually effective.
In older children or children whose cancer has spread, neuroblastoma is much more resistant to conventional therapies.
from the Cincinnati Enquirer
Research at Children's holds hope for solid-tumor remedy
Tweaking a cold sore virus' genetic makeup didn't just result in it killing two different types of cancer cells, new research from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center shows.
Researchers also engineered the virus to prevent the tumors from "recruiting" certain chemicals that cancers use to grow blood vessels and other support structures.
The engineered virus did the job without harming surrounding healthy tissues, researchers said.
The study, released today in the journal Cancer Research, looked at an engineered virus' effect on neuroblastoma and peripheral nerve-sheath tumors.
Both are notoriously stubborn solid tumors that affect children.
Researchers genetically armed an engineered herpes simplex virus to block the action of proteins that help cancer cells form invasive tumors.
The virus, called rQT3, both killed cancer cells and reduced the development of new blood vessels that feed cancerous tumors.
Researchers studied the virus' actions in both human and animal cancer tissue samples.
It's hard to treat solid tumors with conventional chemotherapy and radiation without harming surrounding healthy tissue, said Timothy Cripe, a pediatric cancer specialist and lead author of the study.
The results support more research on using engineered viruses to fight cancer, he said.
Previous research has shown genetically engineered viruses to be effective at slowing the growth of breast, cervical, ovarian and brain cancers in animals.
Scientists began exploring the use of viruses as a cancer therapy in the 1950s, Cripe said, but genetic engineering and viral biology advances allow for the concept to take hold.
Neuroblastoma is a solid-tumor cancer that develops in nerve tissue. It's usually found in children younger than 5.
For children under 2, or those diagnosed with a single cancerous mass, surgery and chemotherapy are usually effective.
In older children or children whose cancer has spread, neuroblastoma is much more resistant to conventional therapies.
posted by Scott @ 5:21 PM
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