A very small London trial of a novel cancer treatment could have very big implications for cancer treatment around the world.
Researchers based at the Institute of Cancer Research in London carried out a small trial of 17 patients suffering from head and neck cancers using a genetically engineered form of the herpes virus to kill cancer tumors. The virus is able to infiltrate the cancer cells and destroy them from within, without affecting healthy cells.
In addition to receiving the virus, patients in this small study also received standard care, which included radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and also surgery to remove the indicated tumor. Following that surgery, 93% of the patients showed no evidence of cancer. On a follow-up of over two years, 82% of patients were still alive.
While this small study was cause for enthusiasm, more research is clearly needed before such a treatment could be considered standard therapy.
CANCER TYPE(S)
Head and neck cancers
TREATMENT TYPE(S)
Viral therapy
WHERE WAS THIS RESEARCH PUBLISHED?
The journal Clinical Cancer Research
By Ross Bonander
Source
BBC News
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