A
vaccine that kills 90 per cent of cancers using the body's natural defence
mechanisms could be widely available within six years, scientists say. Experts
say the treatment has already freed patients of the disease after just two
doses. They hope the treatment could provide a universal injection to help
millions of sufferers fight a range of cancers, including those of the breast
and prostate. The vaccine ImMucin works by triggering the immune system to seek
out and destroy tumours, the Daily Express reported. Cancer cells often
flourish because they are not seen as a threat by the body - unlike bacteria or
viruses. But the new vaccine uses a
molecule called MUC1, found in 90 per cent of cancers, to train the immune
system to recognise the rogue cells.
Scientists
have found that by injecting the right level of MUC1 it can also trigger the
body to fight them. In a trial at the Hadassah Medical Centre in Jerusalem, 10
patients suffering a form of blood cancer were injected with ImMucin. After two
to four courses of treatment, seven saw their immune system strengthened and
three were left free of the disease. The vaccine is designed for patients with
cancer rather than as a preventative jab. It is believed it could be most
effective fighting tumours that are detected early or to help prevent the
return and spread of the disease where patients have been in remission. The
trials are now to be extended to more patients and different types of cancer. They
are being run by drug company Vaxil Biothera-peutics and scientists at Tel Aviv
University. A company spokesman said the
first trial "generated a robust and specific immune response in all
patients which was observed after only two to four doses of the vaccine out of
a maximum of 12 doses".
Source - TOI
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