Skin cancer successfully treated with cold sore virus

Specialists at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and the NHS Royal Marsden Hospital in London today confirmed that a genetically engineered version of the herpes virus, usually responsible for causing cold sores, has been found to improve survival rates amongst skin cancer patients.

The treatment, called "virotherapy", which is the first treatment to use one virus to tackle another, replicates and releases substances to stimulate the immune system, helping to tackle skin cancer when injected directly into tumours.

After more than three years of research, trial results found that the treatment does not harm normal cells, has fewer side effects than traditional chemotherapy and could ultimately prolong life expectancy in cancer sufferers for years.

Professor Paul Workman, chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research in 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".

The trial, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, used 436 patients from 64 centres in the UK, US, Canada and South Africa with an aggressive and inoperable form of melanoma. One in four of those treated with virotheraphy or viral immunotherapy responded positively to the treatment. After six months, 16% were still in remission, with the size of their tumours reduced by more than 50%. A further 10% experienced complete remission. On average, studies showed that patients with an aggressive form of skin cancer survived approximately 20 months longer than patients given an alternative treatment.

Findings from the three year long trials have already been submitted to drugs regulators in Europe and the US. EU drug regulator the European Medicines Agency is expected to deliver its own verdict on the drug, called T-Vec later this year. If approved, scientists believe that T-Vec could be modified to treat other cancers which have spread to vital organs in the body.

Professor Kevin Harrington, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, who led the trial said: "There will have to be discussions about cost effectiveness but we hope to see this agent receive approval in about the next 12 months, making it possible to prescribe it for cancer."

However specialists stress that the treatment, which is not yet licensed, may only work for some patients diagnosed with melanoma.

According to Cancer Research UK, malignant melanoma is the ninth most common cancer in Europe. In the UK, there are 100,000 new cases of skin cancer diagnosed each year, according to The British Skin Foundation.

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Eilish O'Gara

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