Re: A cure for the common cancer?

Max M (maxm@maxmcorp.dk)
Sun, 16 Mar 1997 00:24:36 +0100


> From: Anders Sandberg

> > The method is that the take a common cold virus and encode it with 2
genes
> > that stops the cell (darn another english word i can't remember)
> > multiplying/splitting? The virus is used as a carrier for the gene.
>
> Interesting. The question is how to 1) make it target the cancer cells
> (the common cold virus doesn't care for (say) glial cells, so the carrier

> would not look for a glioma),

They use a very simple technique. A syringe directly into the tumor (thats
probably why it has been so effective against known tumors. And why they
are in doubt if they can make it work on cancer that has spread.) They will
start testing in Germany on Humans with cancer in the large intestine colon
that has spread to the liver.

> 2) how to get it to infect all of them
> (otherwise the survivors would continue dividing, although the immune
> system would now be more likely to look for them if the others were
> dying) and

They do that by using several injections in the tumors.

3) how to avoid making the changed cold virus spread (I'm not
> sure it would be healthy to have such a virus around, mutations happen
> all the time).

As far as popular media reports it's two genes that they can change in the
cancer cells. One is to make the cell stop dividing, the other is to make
the cell kill itself if something is wrong with it (like normal cells do i
guess.) They figure that a few normal cells will be killed to. But it's
over such a short timeframe that it shouldn't matter.

They have found no side effects on the test animals.

MAX M Rasmussen
New Media Director

Private: maxmcorp@inet.uni-c.dk
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