Scientists Use The AIDS Virus To Cure Cancer

[EDDIEKIRK]

HIV has been one of the worst killers of the past few decades worldwide but now it may yield a cure for cancer. Scientists in Korea have been using the virus to cure lung cancer (in mice, at least.)

South Korean scientist Myung-Haing Cho modified a lentivirus, a genus in the Retroviridae family which includes most mammal immunodeficiency viruses, to deliver to lung-cancer tumors a gene, which inhibits cancer cells from reproducing in mice's lungs. Their method of choice? A nasal spray.

They had various cancer-ridden mice sniff the modified lentivirus twice a week for a month, and they found that the modified virus completely halted the progression of the lung cancer without harm to the non-cancerous tissue. In some cases, existing cancer cells even died off without further therapy.

Scientists consider modified lentiviruses ideal for cancer therapy (in addition to other gene therapies) because it affects even non-replicating cells (like neurons) and can create long term changes, positive changes in genes.





http://io9.com/5308691/scientists-use-th...ure-cancer





COLUMBIA(WACH) -- Cold facts aboutHIV/AIDS in South Carolina: The Palmetto State is ranked 10 in the Nation for AIDS cases. There are more cases of AIDS infections in people under 30 than any other State. More than 20 percent of people are not aware they have the virus.

Since its discovery in 1981, there have been an estimated 25 million AIDS/HIV related deaths worldwide. The very disease that has taken millions of lives may be the cure for another ailment which affects millions of people: Cancer.

After 20 years, the University of Pennsylvania researchers say have found a way to engineer a patientsT-cells to destroy the tumors which are linked tochronic lymphocyte leukemia. The trial exceeded our wildest imagination, said Dr. Carl June, one of the lead researchers in the study.

According to Dr. June, the process includes drawing blood from the patient, and extracting the T-cells, at which point a modified harmless version of HIV was added to the cells, and injected back into the patients in the study. Once back in the body, the modified cells act as serial killers, which attacked and destroyed at least 1,000 cancer cells in the 3 test cases.

Dr. June said that the treatment could do away with bone marrow transplantation, which is the current treatment for leukemia.

The study reports that there was no immediate reaction after the re-infusion, however, after 2 weeks, flu symptoms were then noticed, a sign that the treatment was working. A year after the study, 2 of the 3 are cancer free, and the third is showing improvements.

[eloquentsolution]

wow. this is truly amazing one deadly disease killing another!

[SomeDude]

what's worse, the disease or the cure?

[Holistic Organics]

So they arent trading out are they? You get AIDS in exchange for your cancer?

The study reports that there was no immediate reaction after the re-infusion, however, after 2 weeks, flu symptoms were then noticed, a sign that the treatment was working.

Isnt that the first sign of HIV infection?