Sahand SoranOncolytic Virotherapy is a new type of cancer treatment by means of a genetically modified virus which specifically targets cancerous cells and spares healthy cells alongside radiotherapy and chemotherapy known as OVT or oncolytic viral therapy.
The first oncolytic virus approved by FDA was a genetically modified form of Herpesvirus for the treatment of melanoma known as talimogene laherparepvec or T-VEC under the brand name (Imlygic®).
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Specifically the T-VEC’s viral invasion is seen in both healthy cells and tumor cells but healthy tissues lack the expression of infected cell protein 34.5 (ICP34.5).
ICP34.5 blocks the stress response to cells shutting down due to viral infection therefor allowing the virus to replicate in tumor cells but not healthy ones resulting in T-Vec virus to use the cell’s translation machinery to replicate and to release GMCSF at the time when the cancer cells burst attracting dendritic cells to pick up the tumor antigens and express them on their surface for cytotoxic T cells, stimulating a cascade of immune response.
SIDE EFFECTS
The most common side effects of this therapy are fatigue, fever and chills commonly referred to as flu-like symptoms recorded in patients undergoing OVT .
TREATMENT FOR OTHER TYPES OF CANCER
Studies show that Reovirus and Poliovirus can cross the blood brain barrier and enter brain tumors like in glioblastoma Currently phase I clinical trials are being held for treatment of pancreatic cancer with OVT which may be more challenging since pancreatic cancer is usually diagnosed at its advanced stages using viruses such as (Adenovirus,HSV- 1) and also in combination with Gemcitabine.
References
Lawen jalal hama salih
