Gene Therapy for Solid Tumors
Reported November 18, 2005

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths in the developed world. Currently, the only possible treatment is surgery and radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy, which currently has little impact on the disease.

Malignant tumors, or solid tumors, are usually in an area of the body with a rich blood supply. This blood supply not only helps the tumor grow faster but also allows it to spread throughout the body.

Researchers at the University of Shanghai in China are now studying the ability of the protein vasostatin to suppress both the development of new blood vessels and pancreatic tumor cells.

For the experiment, the protein gene was incorporated into a virus that then penetrated the cancer cells.

The results reveal although vasostatin seemed to have little impact on the pancreatic cells, it was successful at blocking the formation of new blood vessels. Vasostatin also successfully deprived the malignant cells of the nutrients they needed to grow.

Researchers say this type of gene therapy may be a potent strategy to treat many malignant tumors, including pancreatic cancer, and represents a promising therapeutic option for malignancy with a poor prognosis.


SOURCE: Gut, published online Nov. 14, 2005