Scientists have reported that a new approach to fight cancer has been found to be hugely successful on mice. In this approach biodegradable polymer implant is used to teach the immune system of the body to attack tumors. The minute implant which is placed under patient’s skin releases antigens specific to the cancerous tumor, thereby reprogramming the body’s immune system to attack and destroy the cancerous cells.

In a recent publication of Science Translational Medicine journal, the scientists have reported that the performance of these implants is satisfactory in eradicating melanoma skin cancer tumors in the mice. David J. Mooney, the leader of the study, also a working professor of Bioengineering in the Harvard’s School of Engineering & Applied Sciences, says that with this method, the power of applying engineering elements to immunology has been shown.

The new implants made up of plastic seem to be less cumbersome and more effective than injectable vaccines for cancer that are presently under clinical experimentation. In injectable vaccines, immune cells from a person’s body are removed, they are reprogrammed for attacking the nasty tissues and then returned back to the body through injections. But it has been shown in experiments that over 90% of these cells get was destroyed even before they can have any effect on the person’s body.

Mooney’s group develops the implants that are made up of FDA approved biodegradable polymer which releases cytokines, a powerful employers of immune system messengers termed as dendritic cells. The dendritic cells enter into the implant where they get exposed to the antigens which are specified to the kind of cancer tumor under target. Then, these cells report to the nearby lymph nodes, where the T cells of the immune system are directed to locate and destroy the tumor cells.

Mooney says that the implants can be inserted under the person’s skin anywhere, similar to the implantable contraceptives that are placed in a lady’s arm. These implants activate the immune response which works to destroy the tumor cells. Mooney’s study was not aimed at curing melanoma in mice, although complete regression of distant and established melanoma tumors was observed by the researchers. Researchers believe that their study shows the success of implantable vaccines and thus provides a basis for the design new vaccine in future.

In the last few years, a lot of research had been conducted in the field of cancer vaccines. Researchers believe that the approach is more beneficial over chemotherapy and conventional cancer surgery, since it only target cancer cells and no other tissues are damaged in the process. It is even hoped that these vaccines may generate a permanent resistance from the cancerous cells, thus providing long-lasting protection against re-occurrence.

According to Mooney, these implant based vaccines generate several kinds of dendritic cells which direct the immune system to create a potent anti-tumor response. He says that this method can down-regulate the destruction made by the tumor and at the same time up-regulate the immune system.

Researchers are working on a new form of cancer treatment that will most likely become available within 5 years. The treatment works on healthy cells by modifying the function of gene to make the cells immune from huge dose of radiation for treating cancer. Using this technique the researchers have succeeded in killing the cancer cells by using very large dose of radiation, while protecting the normal healthy cells.

Radiotherapy is one of the commonly used modality for treatment of cancer and it is estimated that approximately 50% of cancer patients receive radiotherapy which reduce the tumor size and also reduce distance metastasis. But radiotherapy also destroy the normal healthy cells, cause side effects like severe vomiting, fatigue and weakness and also makes the recipient more prone to develop cancer in the future. Radiation can also weaken our immune system.

Scientists now believe that they have found the solution to above mentioned adverse effects of radiotherapy and radiation. Researchers have found that by blocking the function of a protein (TSP1/CD47), it is possible to make the healthy cells immune to very large dose of radiation in mice and pigs, and they believe that the same will work on humans also. Blocking the function protein TSP1/CD47 might suppress the defense mechanism of cancer cells but not of normal healthy cells.

In a study the researchers pre-treated the hind leg of pigs with the agent that blocks the protein TSP1/CD47, which showed that there were very less hair loss, peeling and ulceration in compare to the hind legs of pigs that were not pretreated with the agent that blocks the protein TSP1/CD47. The researchers were surprised by the result they got from the study, which could pave a new way of treating cancer in the future. The study (by using protein TSP1/CD47) was conducted using normal healthy cells of mice, cows, pigs and rats and living animals like pigs, mice and rats. Doctors now (oncologists and radiotherapists) need not to worry much in applying very large doses of radiation for treatment of cancer.

How the agents acts by blocking the protein TSP1/CD47 is not yet clear to the researchers, but they are working on various options to prevent killing the normal healthy cells whiling destroying the cancer cells. Before the new treatment modality can become available more clinical trials and toxicological studies are required.

We are looking forward to new tests and treatment procedures for prostate cancer after the generic code variants have been discovered which triple the chances of the development of this disease. DNA of a huge number of men was screened by the scientists for identifying the nine risk areas that were known previously. It was found in the research that at least 2 genes can be targeted for new forms of treatment for the disease.

One is known as the NKX3.1 which helps in controlling how the cells die and may be a key contributor in the development of the cancer. Clinical trials are already going on the drugs that can be helpful for men who have defective NKX3.1 gene. Another gene is known as ITGA6 which is vital for the growth of the cells, their survival and movement. This gene can also be an important target for the drugs to treat prostate cancer. When it becomes over active, it can be related to some prostate cancers.

The most common type of cancer in men is prostate cancer that accounts for one quarter of all the new cases. Four scientific papers on the topic of genetic discoveries from various international teams got published in Nature Genetics, the journal.

Dr Ros Eeles led a group from Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton, Surrey, which examined DNA of 38,000 men and found 7 regions of the genetic code which increased the risks of developing prostate cancer.

The scientists observed the differences in over 43,000 single letter variations in the code known as SNPs or Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms. According to Dr Eeles, their study adds evidence to the notion that the genetic factors influence man’s risk to develop prostate cancer. The results will be helpful in calculating the risks of developing prostate cancer more accurately so that more targeted screening can be carried out. After understanding more about the genes, new treatment procedures can also be developed.

The research has taken the total number of areas of human genome, or genetic code blue print, related to higher risks of prostate cancer to over 20. Other findings of the research are focused upon an area on chromosome eight which is previously also linked with the prostate cancer. Chromosome eight is a package of DNA which houses the genes. Two new SNPs were found in these areas which independently raise the probability of development of the disease.
According to the estimates made by the scientists, 100 men who carry most genetic variants have 20% lifetime risks of developing prostate cancer. Compared to that, the average chances of a man to develop prostate cancer are on 10% in his life.

Professor Doug Easton from Cancer Research UK’s Generic Epidemiology Unit, Cambridge, says that there are greatest numbers of independent genes that affect risks of developing any cancer in prostate cancer but only a little is understood about how the disease is developed. New clue are provided in this study about the involved processes, which can be used to help in development of new treatment procedures in the near future.

Harpal Kumar, the chief of Cancer Research UK said that the research has increases our knowledge about how specific genes may affect a man’s risks to develop prostate cancer. More avenues are likely to be opened up because of the study so that the disease can be diagnosed, prevented and treated in a better way.