Trial Uses Measles to Kill Bone Marrow Cancer

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Researchers look to engineer the virus as treatment for multiple myeloma
-- Robert Preidt
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Today's Health News

SUNDAY, March 11 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. researchers are launching a
phase I clinical trial to test an engineered measles virus against the
bone marrow cancer multiple myeloma.

Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer where plasma cell tumors are spread
throughout bone marrow.

In this trial, conducted at the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center in Rochester,
Minn, the measles vaccine will be administered intravenously to adults
with relapsed or refractory (meaning patients have failed more than one
type of treatment) myeloma. The participants must not have had allogenic
(from another person) stem cell transplants and must have previously had
the measles or been vaccinated against it.

This is the third in a series of Mayo studies testing the potential of
measles to kill cancer. The other two studies are looking at the effect
of measles on recurrent ovarian cancer and a type of brain tumor called
glioblastoma multiforme.

The measles viruses used in the research were engineered by inserting
additional genes into the measles vaccine strain. The measles viruses
seek out a protein called CD46 -- which is overexpressed by many cancers
-- and use it as a receptor to enter the cancer cells.

Once inside the cancer cell, the measles virus spreads and infects
nearby tumor cells, causing them to fuse together and increasing cancer
cell death.

Interesting article...I'll keep my fingers cross that this works!!
Could always used a new cure!! Now...to work on HIV...

Great info FedMan. Very interesting. My brother lives very close to
Rochester in MN and for the most part sends me articles of this type. I
did not see this one yet from him though.

Thanks.

Verb