Group develops method of killing cancer cells with antibodies and light
Baku, November 12 (AZERTAC). Traditionally, there are three major ways to combat cancer in people: surgical removal, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. And while all three have been proven to be effective in treating some types of cancer, all three also have unpleasant side effects. It`s for this reason that researchers continue to try to find other ways to kill cancer cells. Now, in a paper published in Nature Medicine, a team from the National Cancer Institute in the United States, says that it has developed a type of photoimmunotherapy that combines a light-sensitive dye that has a special chemical in it and antibodies to target and kill cancer cells when light is shined on them.
Photoimmunotherapy has been tried before, but not in this way, in previous research such antibodies were not nearly so target specific, meaning they tended to kill other cells as well. In this latest research, the team was able to use tumor specific antibodies that would attach themselves to the cancer cells, but would remain dormant. It was only when the same cancer cells were also exposed to a chemical called IR700 and then exposed to light that the antibodies went to work killing the cancer cells.
In their lab studies, the team inserted a type of skin cancer into the skin on the back of a mouse; when given the drug and then exposed to light, the research team found that the size of the tumor in the mouse was significantly reduced compared to control mice. They also found that other cells around the tumor were unaffected and that there didn`t appear to be any toxic reactions to the treatment.
It`s not yet known if the procedure would work in humans, but further research is likely to be done in a lot of areas, likely including other types of animals before tests can be conducted with human volunteers. Also, research is continuing to see if it might be possible to use antibodies to deliver other sorts of cancer killing agents, such as radiation.
If such types of photoimmunotherapy prove workable, millions of people the world over might be spared the pain of surgery and/or the harmful side effects of radiation and chemotherapy.
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