Cancer is one of the world’s leading causes of death. Over the years, scientists have been discovering different ways to fight cancerous cells, and one of the newest ways to tackle cancer is oncolytic virotherapy. This therapy uses viruses to attack and kill cancer cells. These viruses are either naturally able to target cancer or are modified in the lab to do so. The most special thing about oncolytic virotherapy is that the virus can recognize and destroy cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone.
In addition, they also help the body’s immune system to better recognize and fight cancerous cells in order to keep the cancer from spreading to other healthy cells. The idea, however, of using viruses to treat cancer has been around for a while. Back in the early 1990s, doctors noticed that some cancer patients who got viral infections showed signs of improvement. However, the technology to make these viral infections a treatment method took many years. Thanks to recent advancements, this was able to be made possible.
How Oncolytic Virotherapy Works
Oncolytic Virotherapy works in three major ways. Firstly, oncolytic viruses are designed to go after cancer cells and ignore healthy ones. Cancer cells usually have weak defenses against viruses, so the virus can get in and start making copies of itself inside these cells. This way, the virus only attacks cancer without harming most of the body’s normal cells.
Secondly, the virus starts making copies of itself until the cell can’t handle it anymore. Once the cancer cell reaches its threshold, it bursts open, releasing new virus particles. These new viruses can then move on to infect nearby cancer cells and repeat the same process. Entering and breaking open cancer cells are the main ways the treatment works in order to shrink or eliminate tumors.
Lastly, as the cancer cells burst, they release signals that attract the immune system’s attention. The immune system not only starts fighting the virus, but also recognizes the cancer cells as threats. At this point, the body begins to respond and starts fighting cancer on a larger scale, even in areas the virus hasn’t reached yet.
Types of Oncolytic Viruses
There are two types of oncolytic viruses used for this treatment: naturally occurring viruses that naturally target cancer cells, and genetically engineered viruses that are specially designed to fight cancer more safely.
Naturally Occurring Viruses: Some viruses already have a natural ability to target and infect cancer cells over the healthier ones. These viruses are chosen because they are naturally drawn to cancer cells, making them the perfect fit for a treatment like this. Examples of these viruses include certain types of herpes virus, reovirus, and Newcastle disease virus. These natural viruses are tested to make sure they are safe for patients and effective in fighting cancer.
Genetically Engineered Viruses: Scientists can also modify viruses in the lab to make them better at attacking cancer cells. This is done by changing the viruses’ genes. Researchers can make it safer, more effective, and even give it extra abilities like helping the immune system to recognize and fight cancer. This modified version of these viruses like adenovirus and herpes virus are being studied properly to see how well they work against cancer.
Bottom Line
Oncolytic virotherapy is an exciting new way to treat cancer that uses viruses to attack only cancer cells, leaving healthy cells mostly unharmed. Scientists can either use viruses found in nature or modify them in the lab to make them even better at targeting cancer. These viruses kill cancer cells directly and also help the immune system to better recognize and fight cancer throughout the body. With this double action; directly attacking cancer and boosting the immune response; oncolytic virotherapy has the potential to become a powerful tool in cancer treatment.
