Man-made virus can ‘cure’ cancer

LONDON: A genetically engineered virus has been shown to “cure” patients of skin cancer, raising hopes of an end to chemotherapy.
In a worldwide study led by The Institute of Cancer Research in the UK, scientists showed that the new treatment allowed some patients with melanoma to live for more than three years — the benchmark many oncologists use to define a cure.
The therapy, called T-VEC, works by infecting and killing cancer cells while also kicking the immune system into action against tumours. Charities said the development was exciting and offered new hope to many patients.
“Patients showing responses beyond three years is something that up until now, we could only have imagined,” said Gillian Nuttall, the founder of Melanoma UK.
Malignant melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in the UK, with more than 13,000 cases diagnosed each year. It kills more than 2,000 people each year.
Prof Paul Workman, the chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said: “We may normally think of viruses as the enemies of mankind, but it’s their very ability to specifically infect and kill human cells that can make them such promising cancer treatments. “In this case, we are harnessing the ability of an engineered virus to kill cancer cells and stimulate an immune response.”