Herpes Virus To Cure Cancer

Herpes has been known as one of the contagious disease that quite disturbing. But who would have thought if the herpes virus that causes it actually can be a cure for cancer.

Doctors have managed to find the engineering of the herpes virus to treat patients with head and neck cancer. Head cancer, neck, mouth, tongue and throat suffered by many people.

"Actually, current medications can treat effectively if the cancer is removed from the beginning, but many patients are not diagnosed until the situation is quite severe," said Dr Kevin Harrington, leader of the study, as reported by the BBC News, Friday (6/8/2010).

Viruses are engineered to work with the way inserted into the cell, then kill the cancer cells from inside and also stimulates the immune system of patients.

Dr Harrington explained that the herpes virus, which is also being tested on patients suffering from skin cancer, genetically manipulated so that it can thrive in tumor cells, but did not infect healthy cells are normal.

Cancer treatment has three effects, namely doubling the virus, killing the tumor cells, and engineered to produce human proteins that activate the immune system and can also create a viral protein that acts as a 'red flag' for immune cells.

Royal Marsden Hospital in London have been using this engineered herpes virus in 17 patients with standard treatment, namely chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Reportedly 93 percent of patients who received injections of this virus showed a good result. Herpes virus can help kill tumors in most patients and found no traces of cancer after surgery.

More than two years later, 82 percent of patients did not complain about the same disease. Only two people who relapse from 13 patients given high dose treatment.

But further research is still needed to ensure that the herpes virus can be a powerful weapon to fight cancer. These findings have been published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.


source : detikhealth