New therapy, effective in cancer treatment

Results from a recent study by US scientists show that it is possible to use 'stem cell shield' to protect the body from the harmful effects of chemotherapy.

In Medicine, drugs used in chemotherapy are known to prevent rapid division of cancer cells, but they are also the culprits that damage healthy tissue, especially marrow. bones, increase the risk of infection, shortness of breath and fatigue. Even some types can trigger deadly allergic reactions.

The 'stem cell shield' is being tested
Test on a patient with brain cancer.

The team at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle used genetically engineered stem cells to create a bone marrow shield while tumor cells were unshielded, said Dr. Jennifer Adair. .

Stem cells are taken from the patient's bone marrow and isolated. Next they introduced a virus with a gene that protects against chemotherapy. The cells are then brought back to the patient's body.

The study's lead author, Professor Hans-Peter Kiem, said: 'This therapy has no side effects, helping patients to adapt to the chemotherapy process significantly better'.

Experimenting on 3 people with brain cancer, experts found that they all lived longer than the average of 12 months for cancer. Even a patient is still alive after 34 months of treatment.

'This is a completely new approach to protecting normal cells during cancer treatment,' said Professor Susan Short. 'We are still continuing to conduct research to develop this therapy'.