A patient is injected with a cancer-killing virus treatment for the first time

[D-D-W]

https://interestingengineering.com/...3LGXtyvi7CDN8nAkATniZeFdBTobcATDrFpjNqVO5GY2I

The City of Hope, one of the largest cancer treatment and research organizations in the U.S., announced in a press release that it had begun Phase 1 of its clinical trial to use a modified virus to target advanced solid tumors.

Modern science is using a wide range of tools at its disposal to solve the puzzle of cancer. From using drugs that selectively target cancerous cells to reprogramming the immune cells of the patient to fight off cancer, the researchers are using innovative mechanisms to reduce collateral damage and improve patient outcomes. An oncolytic - cancer-killing virus falls neatly in this category as well.
How does the treatment work?

The technology aims to use the body's immune system to counter tumors. However, the presence of the tumor is an obvious sign that the immune system has failed to recognize the threat. So, researchers aim to use a virus that will produce fragments that can flag cancerous cells to the immune system.

To do this, the researchers modify a virus, in this case, a poxvirus, and then use it to infect the patient. Once inside the host cell, the modified virus replicates and then blasts open the host cell to release thousands of new viral particles that then go and attach themselves to the cancerous cells. These attachments serve as a flag for the host's immune system to attack the cancerous cells.

The treatment being used in this trial has been developed by the Australian company, Imugene and is called CF-33-hNIS or Vaxinia. The drug has shown to be effective in shrinking colon, lung, breast, ovarian, and pancreatic tumors in laboratory tests and in animal models, the press release claims.

The hNIS in the drug stands for human Sodium Iodide transporter, a protein that the researchers will use to image and monitor viral replication as well as damage to the cancerous cells by using radioactive iodine Science Alert reported.
What will the trial entail?

The Phase 1 trial is aimed at determining that the drug is safe and will be administered to 100 volunteers across ten sites in the U.S. and Australia. The volunteers will be cancer patients with metastatic or advanced solid tumors who have had at least two prior lines of cancer treatments. The experimental drug, Vaxinia, will either be injected intravenously or directly into the tumors, the press release said.

While all volunteers will receive the drug, once the safety of the drug has been demonstrated, certain individuals will also receive the pembrolizumab, an immunotherapy that has also been documented to improve the immune system's capability to fight tumors.

"Interestingly, the same characteristics that eventually make cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy or radiation treatment actually enhance the success of oncolytic viruses," said Yuman Fong, a key developer of the genetically modified virus. "We are hoping to harness the promise of virology and immunotherapy for the treatment of a wide variety of deadly cancers."

The trial is being undertaken under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA)'s investigational new drug (IND) process and was authorized in December 2021. Patient recruitment is still ongoing and is expected to take two years to complete.

 

[stovebolts]

Fascinating. Thank you for sharing.

 

[daninthelionsden]

https://interestingengineering.com/...3LGXtyvi7CDN8nAkATniZeFdBTobcATDrFpjNqVO5GY2I

The City of Hope, one of the largest cancer treatment and research organizations in the U.S., announced in a press release that it had begun Phase 1 of its clinical trial to use a modified virus to target advanced solid tumors.

Modern science is using a wide range of tools at its disposal to solve the puzzle of cancer. From using drugs that selectively target cancerous cells to reprogramming the immune cells of the patient to fight off cancer, the researchers are using innovative mechanisms to reduce collateral damage and improve patient outcomes. An oncolytic - cancer-killing virus falls neatly in this category as well.
How does the treatment work?

The technology aims to use the body's immune system to counter tumors. However, the presence of the tumor is an obvious sign that the immune system has failed to recognize the threat. So, researchers aim to use a virus that will produce fragments that can flag cancerous cells to the immune system.

To do this, the researchers modify a virus, in this case, a poxvirus, and then use it to infect the patient. Once inside the host cell, the modified virus replicates and then blasts open the host cell to release thousands of new viral particles that then go and attach themselves to the cancerous cells. These attachments serve as a flag for the host's immune system to attack the cancerous cells.

The treatment being used in this trial has been developed by the Australian company, Imugene and is called CF-33-hNIS or Vaxinia. The drug has shown to be effective in shrinking colon, lung, breast, ovarian, and pancreatic tumors in laboratory tests and in animal models, the press release claims.

The hNIS in the drug stands for human Sodium Iodide transporter, a protein that the researchers will use to image and monitor viral replication as well as damage to the cancerous cells by using radioactive iodine Science Alert reported.
What will the trial entail?

The Phase 1 trial is aimed at determining that the drug is safe and will be administered to 100 volunteers across ten sites in the U.S. and Australia. The volunteers will be cancer patients with metastatic or advanced solid tumors who have had at least two prior lines of cancer treatments. The experimental drug, Vaxinia, will either be injected intravenously or directly into the tumors, the press release said.

While all volunteers will receive the drug, once the safety of the drug has been demonstrated, certain individuals will also receive the pembrolizumab, an immunotherapy that has also been documented to improve the immune system's capability to fight tumors.

"Interestingly, the same characteristics that eventually make cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy or radiation treatment actually enhance the success of oncolytic viruses," said Yuman Fong, a key developer of the genetically modified virus. "We are hoping to harness the promise of virology and immunotherapy for the treatment of a wide variety of deadly cancers."

The trial is being undertaken under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA)'s investigational new drug (IND) process and was authorized in December 2021. Patient recruitment is still ongoing and is expected to take two years to complete.

It is truly amazing how we can take another country's technological findings and catapult them these new fantastic levels. Cuba had made the breakthrough in tailoring the body's own immune system to fight cancer and look what we did with it. Russia pioneered the propulsion/lift system of the Yak 41 and we advanced it to the F35. We not only copy, we astoundingly surpass.

 

[WIP]

A while ago I read and posted here that mRNA technology shows some real promise toward fighting cancers. Some of the preliminary tests on rats showed positive results.

 

[jasonc]

It is truly amazing how we can take another country's technological findings and catapult them these new fantastic levels. Cuba had made the breakthrough in tailoring the body's own immune system to fight cancer and look what we did with it. Russia pioneered the propulsion/lift system of the Yak 41 and we advanced it to the F35. We not only copy, we astoundingly surpass.

Av 8 Harrier a British us design .older the. F35 .goes back to the late 70s

 

[stovebolts]

A while ago I read and posted here that mRNA technology shows some real promise toward fighting cancers. Some of the preliminary tests on rats showed positive results.

Messenger RNA (mRNA)-Based, Personalized Cancer Vaccine Against Neoantigens Expressed by the Autologous Cancer - Full Text View - ClinicalTrials.gov

Messenger RNA (mRNA)-Based, Personalized Cancer Vaccine Against Neoantigens Expressed by the Autologous Cancer - Full Text View.

clinicaltrials.gov

 

[daninthelionsden]

Av 8 Harrier a British us design .older the. F35 .goes back to the late 70s

Yes. They're both jump-jets, but they follow different methods of achieving and sustaining vtol/stol. The Harrier uses the ducted thrust of one engine and the AV8B has been taken to its practical end. The Yak36 uses one engine during level flight and when taking off/landing conventionally, but uses an additional lift engine (in addition to a ducted main engine) to achieve vtol/stol. The Yak36 progressed to the Yak41. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, an American corporation feigned the desire to partner with Yakolev to develop the Yak41 further. After obtaining the critical technology, the Americans backed out and effectively stole the technology. You can see the Yak41 lineage in the F35. Countries do this sort of thing to each other all the time. China is famous for this. We did the same thing to Cuba. We wanted their expertise in immuno-technology, promised them access to American markets and a lifting of sanctions. After gaining the technology, we slammed the door in their faces and reimposed sanctions. Of course our govrnment uses smoke and mirrors to give a different angle publicly.

 

[jasonc]

Yes. They're both jump-jets, but they follow different methods of achieving and sustaining vtol/stol. The Harrier uses the ducted thrust of one engine and the AV8B has been taken to its practical end. The Yak36 uses one engine during level flight and when taking off/landing conventionally, but uses an additional lift engine (in addition to a ducted main engine) to achieve vtol/stol. The Yak36 progressed to the Yak41. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, an American corporation feigned the desire to partner with Yakolev to develop the Yak41 further. After obtaining the critical technology, the Americans backed out and effectively stole the technology. You can see the Yak41 lineage in the F35. Countries do this sort of thing to each other all the time. China is famous for this. We did the same thing to Cuba. We wanted their expertise in immuno-technology, promised them access to American markets and a lifting of sanctions. After gaining the technology, we slammed the door in their faces and reimposed sanctions. Of course our govrnment uses smoke and mirrors to give a different angle publicly.

The harrier uses four ports,the Soviet version uses 6.
Doesn't matter how many engines ,the amount of thrust holding the bird to operate like helicopter is the difference .these don't operate well in high ,sandy altitudes .just like the helicopter as air density is the problem .

The Russians invented the gyrocopter first we got it done with the osprey .based on an attempt by nasa.

The Sikorski brothers are interesting as they designed for both Russia and the u.s. after they defected.

 

[daninthelionsden]

The harrier uses four ports,the Soviet version uses 6.
Doesn't matter how many engines ,the amount of thrust holding the bird to operate like helicopter is the difference .these don't operate well in high ,sandy altitudes .just like the helicopter as air density is the problem .

The Russians invented the gyrocopter first we got it done with the osprey .based on an attempt by nasa.

The Sikorski brothers are interesting as they designed for both Russia and the u.s. after they defected.

Yes. They both use ducted thrust, but the way they utilize the thrust does make a difference. The Harrier is rapidly ending its lifespan as it uses ducted thrust throughout its flight whereas the Yak 41/F35 only use ducted thrust during STOL/VTOL. Otherwise the Yak41/F35 configuration flies like a conventional aircraft. The ducted thrust method the Harrier uses makes it vulnerable to heatseeking SAMs as we found out during Desert Storm. Even with counter measures, going into combat with Harriers in the modern war environment is riskier than using the F35. Not to mention how incredibly loud the Harrier is as it flies overhead, what with all its thrust being exhausted under the lower portion of the aircraft. Its configuration limits payload and fuel compared to the Yak41/F35.

 

[jasonc]

Yes. They both use ducted thrust, but the way they utilize the thrust does make a difference. The Harrier is rapidly ending its lifespan as it uses ducted thrust throughout its flight whereas the Yak 41/F35 only use ducted thrust during STOL/VTOL. Otherwise the Yak41/F35 configuration flies like a conventional aircraft. The ducted thrust method the Harrier uses makes it vulnerable to heatseeking SAMs as we found out during Desert Storm. Even with counter measures, going into combat with Harriers in the modern war environment is riskier than using the F35. Not to mention how incredibly loud the Harrier is as it flies overhead, what with all its thrust being exhausted under the lower portion of the aircraft. Its configuration limits payload and fuel compared to the Yak41/F35.

The yak is actually younger then the av8

87 ,in use,versus 83,the harrier was used in the Falkland wars .

My point is that nato got it started first ,the Soviets after ,by probably spies.

 

[daninthelionsden]

The yak is actually younger then the av8

87 ,in use,versus 83,the harrier was used in the Falkland wars .

My point is that nato got it started first ,the Soviets after ,by probably spies.

Yep. The AV8B is long in the tooth and is being put out to pasture. The Yak41 was developed after the first Yak model proved inferior to the Harrier and inadequate for Soviet Navy requirements. They improved the original Yak into a workable production model in the Yak41. It was the first production jump jet to go supersonic. Funding for the Yak 41 fell out after the collapse of the Soviet Union. During the rather short lived thawing of hostilities, an American corporation stepped in and offered Yakolev a partnership to further develop the Yak41. The Americans backed out ,but kept the tech. documents. While the first Yak jump jet was inferior, the later Yak 41 proved to be superior to the Harrier and America got its hands on that data turning it into the F35. We hoodwinked the Russians and took their tech from them.

 

[jasonc]

I'm not impressed by the f 35.

Note designation it's a fighter .not an attack .something about the yak in Afghanistan or Iraq that we shot them down easily .