Cancer-eating virus could be tested on patients
A unique treatment for a rare form of cancer could be tested on patients in Uppsala. Under the spotlight is a virus, engineered to seek out and destroy neuroendocrine tumours. Private individuals have financed the study.
In the freezer outside Magnus Essand’s workroom are plastic tubes filled with a very special virus.
“It is a genetically modified virus, specially engineered to locate, attack and destroy neuroendocrine tumours,” says Magnus Essand, professor at the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology.
Endocrine tumours are small tumours that are caused by genetic alterations in hormone-producing cells. This form of cancer is rare, 350 new cases are reported annually in Sweden, compared to 10,000 cases of prostate cancer and 7,000 cases of breast cancer.
During a six year period Magnus Essand’s research team developed the experimental virus treatment with the oncolytic, “cancer-eating” virus.
“Now we are planning a unique study. It will be the first time that a specially engineered virus against neuroendocrine tumours is tested on humans.
What’s planned is a clinical phase I study in which the viral treatment is tested on patients with neuroendocrine cancer.” The location will be the Uppsala University Hospital, which is an international centre of excellence for the diagnosis and treatment of neuroendocrine tumours. The study, if approved by the Swedish Medical Products Agency, can start at the end of 2014. If the results appear promising, then Phase II and Phase III studies remain. Thus a completed treatment may take many years.
Funding for the study is somewhat unique, as the money comes from private individuals. Thousands of people from some 40 countries have so far donated over SEK 20 million to the oncolytic virus fund, which Uppsala University started in September 2012. One of the donors is a Geneva-based oil contractor Vincent Hamilton, who has endocrine cancer.
“In the oil industry success is perhaps one in ten drilling attempts.” The same logic applies here. The researchers cannot guarantee that the cancer treatment will work, but if it does, the reward is enormous,” he says.
To encourage individuals to donate to a specific research project is known as crowdfunding. This phenomenon has emerged in recent years, particularly in the USA. Uppsala University's first attempt has been successful and has whetted an appetite.
“Crowdfunding is a very interesting form of financing. The University can answer for the quality seal by backing the fundraising campaigns for high quality research. However, it is important not to give false hope to the donors, we can never guarantee that the research will succeed,” says Britt Skogseid, deputy vice-chancellor of the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy.
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FACTS/This has happened:
2011 Magnus Essand's research team presented a virus that was specially engineered to destroy neuroendocrine tumours. A lack of funding for a clinical study on patients meant that the research was put on hold.
In August 2012 the British newspaper The Guardian, published an article on the potential cancer treatment. The author of the article started a fundraising campaign, aka crowdfunding, to raise money for a clinical study. The campaign spread through social media and news media worldwide. Uppsala University formed the oncolytic virus fund for public donations.
In May 2013, the fund had collected sufficient money for a clinical study to be started. In total, more than 2,000 people from 40 countries have donated money.
The research team is now preparing an application to the Swedish Medical Products Agency to start the world's first human trial with a virus that attacks neuroendocrine tumours.
Neuroendocrine tumours...
... are small tumours of hormone-producing cells and is a rare form of cancer. According to the Swedish Cancer Society 350 new cases are discovered annually compared to 10,000 cases of prostate cancer and 7,000 cases of breast cancer. This form of cancer became known to the public at large when Apple founder Steve Jobs died of neuroendocrine cancer of the pancreas.
Oncolytic virus fund
Would you like to know more or make a donation? Read more about the collection at:www.uu.se/stod-uu/onkolytiska