Scientists may be able to turn a longtime bacterial foe into a cancer-fighting ally, new research suggests this week. has shown promise in the treatment of difficult-to-eradicate tumors, with one patient experiencing complete remission for 15 months so far. Is required.
The viral treatment is known as RP2, a genetically engineered strain of herpes simplex type 1 that is responsible for most cases of oral herpes and some cases of genital herpes in humans. design Work on two fronts. Viruses injected directly into tumors are thought to selectively infect and kill specific cancer cells. However, it also blocks the expression of a protein produced by these cells known as CTLA-4 and hijacks the machinery to produce another molecule called GM-CSF. The net result of these cellular changes is to weaken the cancer’s ability to hide and fend off the immune system.
In a phase I trial conducted by scientists from The Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in the UK, RP2 was administered as the sole treatment for nine patients with advanced cancer who had not responded to other therapies it was done. She was also administered to 30 patients in combination with another immunotherapy drug. Her three patients on RP2 alone appeared to respond to treatment, meaning the cancers shrunk or stopped growing, as did her seven patients on the combination therapy. Notably, one of her patients, who has some type of cancer along the salivary glands, has shown no signs of cancer for at least 15 months after treatment with RP2 alone. No life-threatening adverse events were reported in the trial, and the most common post-treatment symptoms were fever, chills, and other flu-like illnesses.
Survey results, Presented It is provisional as it has not yet been scrutinized in a formal peer review process at the 2022 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) meeting this week. Also, the sample size is very small, so the results should be taken with caution. However, the Phase I trials are not intended to show that the treatment is effective, only that it is safe enough for humans to take. The team argues that the fact that some people with cancer already seem to respond to RP2 is a very good sign that RP2 can live up to its full potential.
“Our work shows that genetically engineered cancer-killing viruses can provide a one-two punch against tumors: destroying cancer cells directly from the inside while also recruiting the immune system against them.” said lead author Kevin Harrington, Professor of Biological Cancers, Cancer Institute. statement from the organization.
科学者たちは hope full of About viruses that fight cancer for a long time. However, it is only recently that this hope has finally begun to pay off. In 2015, the first virotherapy was approved In the United States for certain advanced cases of melanoma. In May of this year, California scientists began a phase I clinical trial of an anticancer virus. vaccinia. other enterprise We are developing unique candidates, either alone or in combination with other therapies. Replimune is also developing two of his other candidates based on modified herpesviruses.
While many experimental treatments never end up crossing the finish line and becoming available to the public, at least some of these viruses may one day become the new standard of care for cancer.
