HSV-1
sa smith | October 30, 2015April 7, 2010:
Using HSV-1 to cure metastatic melanoma
May 26, 2015:
WHOOOO!!!!! GMO HSV-1 vs Cancer
October 27, 2015:
FDA approves first-of-its-kind product for the treatment of melanoma
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Melanoma, one type of skin cancer, is the leading cause of skin cancer related deaths, and is most often caused by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. According to the National Cancer Institute approximately 74,000 Americans will be diagnosed with melanoma and nearly 10,000 will die from the disease in 2015.
Imlygic, a genetically modified…
sa smith | May 27, 2015WHOOOOOOOO!!!!
April 7, 2010:
Using HSV-1 to cure metastatic melanoma
May 26, 2015:
Talimogene Laherparepvec Improves Durable Response Rate in Patients With Advanced Melanoma
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
They just published the results of Phase III clinical trials of a herpes simplex-1 genetically modified to kill cancers, specifically, advanced melanoma.
The GMO virus has a name now: T-VEC.
And instead of looking at 50 patients who all got the virus, this study was a group of 436 patients , randomly assigned 2:1 to a treatment (T-VEC) group, or GM-CSF only group (the immunostimulatory molecule…
sa smith | February 4, 2013This is one of the cool ideas not included in the 1800 human gene therapy trials because its still in animal models, not humans:
Preclinical Therapy of Disseminated HER-2+ Ovarian and Breast Carcinomas with a HER-2-Retargeted Oncolytic Herpesvirus
If Ive said it once, Ive said it 1000 times: 'Cancer' is not a monolithic entity. We have not 'cured cancer' because there are lots and lots and lots of different kinds of cancers.
Some ovarian cancers and some breast cancers have a protein upregulated, HER-2. Scientists have capitalized on this observation to create anti-tumor drugs that focus on…
sa smith | January 28, 2013Hey remember how I told you all scientists are using herpes, the regular-ol much hated cold-sore virus, to treat/cure cancers?
The approach has left us with miraculous effects... or no effects at all.
I mean, half of the melanoma patients lived A LOT LONGER than they were supposed to, several of them ending up with no evidence of disease... But that also means that half werent helped at all.
HSV-1 couldnt help a child with rhabdomyosarcoma... when it was 'supposed' to work so well.
What happened?
Of course that question has a collection of complex answers, and there are lots of scientists…
sa smith | November 26, 2012Scientists all around the world are creating legions of genetically modified viruses to treat/cure human afflictions, from nicotine addiction to hemophilia (A and B).
One disease a lot of folks are focused on in brain cancer. Certainly not a monolithic entity-- but scientists are working on viruses against them all. One of the viruses on the front lines against cancer is herpes.
Good old fashioned cold sore viruses love to blow up brain cancers.
But while HSV-1 has worked well in cell lines and some animal models, human trials have not worked out as well (sigh, sigh).
WHY???
Maybe this is…
sa smith | October 3, 2012Orac wrote yesterday about the abominable union between anti-vaxers and anti-GMOers:
“Genetically modified” vaccines and GMOs: Sapping and impurifying all our precious bodily fluids?
My 'message' to these kinds of people? Get over it. Fast. Because you look ridiculous.
Skinner: Im telling you people, the earth revolves around the sun!
Abe: Burn him! [lights the pyre]
Shutton: What a story! [takes a photo]
Abe: [chasing him] Youve stolen my soul!
Average Joes and Janes might, might know a little bit about the Most Famous GMO viruses: Vaccines. And thats all fine and dandy for some of them…
sa smith | September 17, 2012What happens when the pain gets to be too much? What happens when the drugs stop working? The physicians are giving you as much as you can take without dying, and youre still living with 7, 8, 9 levels of pain, every waking moment? Some of the talk behind physician assisted suicide is to let people decide when enough is enough, and to permanently end their pain-filled hellish existence.
But what if there were options?
What if herpes could bring your pain levels down from 7, 8, 9... to 1-2? What if herpes could take you from 'I want to end my own life' to 'I can handle this'?
What if I…
sa smith | March 2, 2012'Thinking positively':
Thinking any and all observed phenotypes are observable phenotypes because of some evolutionary reason. Phenotype X must have an evolutionary advantage! Even if Phenotype X appears detrimental/neutral, if Phenotype X wasnt advantageous, it wouldnt exist, right? Survival of the fittest! Evolution! YAY!!!
No, not always.
Evolution is a dirty, messy process. Sometimes shit just happens. There is no reason. No higher purpose, from deities or evolution. It just happens. Chance.
Viruses are happy to provide us with examples of this. First there was HPV. Now herpes…
sa smith | May 7, 2010WARNING: Get a box of Kleenex before you read this post! I am NOT joking.
A few weeks ago I wrote a post on how scientists are using a genetically modified herpes simplex-1 virus to attack metastatic melanoma (an oncolytic, ie kills tumor cells, virus). The results of their clinical trials blew my mind.
Today I found out (thanks to an awesome reader!), that they are trying a similar protocol in a 13 year old kid with rhabdomyosarcoma. What this boy has been through:
Now 13-years-old, Evan was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma in June 2008 at the age of 11...
... He's endured 28 rounds of…
sa smith | April 7, 2010Metastatic melanoma is definately one of the Cancers That Suck.
We basically have the same treatment options in 2010 as they had back in 1975... and not because we have chemotherapy/immunotherapy that works super great, no reason to change it. Our treatment options just suck, with horrible consequences-- Say you have 100 friends that are diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic melanoma today. One year from today, only about 25, 26 of those friends will still be alive.
~25.
Out of 100.
Survive one year after diagnosis.
Maybe fewer (this paper Im reading says 25.5%, Wikipedia says 9-15%).…