Monday, August 12, 2013

NEW WONDER DRUG MATCHES AND KILL ALL KIND OF CANCER

Stanford researchers are on track to begin human trials of a
potentially potent new weapon against cancer, and would-be
participants are flooding in following the Post’s initial report
on the discovery.
The progress comes just two months after the
groundbreaking study by Dr Irv Weissman, who developed an
antibody that breaks down a cancer's defense mechanisms in
the body.
A protein called CD47 tells the body not to "eat" the cancer,
but the antibody developed by Dr Weissman blocks CD47 and
frees up immune cells called macrophages — which can then
engulf the deadly cells.
The new research shows the miraculous macrophages
effectively act as intelligence gatherers for the body, pointing
out cancerous cells to cancer-fighting "killer T" cells.
The T cells then "learn" to hunt down and attack the cancer,
the researchers claim.
“It was completely unexpected that CD8+ T (killer T) cells
would be mobilized when macrophages engulfed the cancer
cells in the presence of CD47-blocking antibodies,” said MD/
PhD student Diane Tseng, who works with Dr. Weissman.
The clinical implications of the process could be profound in
the war on cancer.
When macrophages present "killer T" cells with a patient's
cancer, the T cells become attuned to the unique molecular
markers on the cancer.
This turns them into a personalized cancer vaccine.
“Because T cells are sensitized to attack a patient’s particular
cancer, the administration of CD47-blocking antibodies in a
sense could act as a personalized vaccination against that
cancer,” Tseng said.
The team of researchers at Stanford plan on starting a small
10-100 person phase I clinical human trial of the cancer
therapy in 2014.

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