Zagreb, November 13: In a groundbreaking and controversial move, Beata Halassy, a virologist from Croatia, successfully treated her own stage 3 breast cancer using an experimental vaccine made from lab-grown viruses. Diagnosed in 2020 with a recurrence of cancer at the site of a previous mastectomy, Halassy was unwilling to endure another round of chemotherapy. Drawing on her expertise in virology, she turned to oncolytic virotherapy (OVT), an emerging cancer treatment that uses viruses to target and destroy cancer cells while stimulating the body’s immune response.

Halassy, who works at the University of Zagreb, targeted and attacked her tumour using a combination of lab-grown viruses, including a measles virus and vesicular stomatitis virus. The experimental treatment not only shrank the tumour but also triggered an immune response, ultimately leading to her recovery. This success has raised interest in OVT as a potential alternative to traditional cancer therapies. Let’s learn more about her groundbreaking approach and the science behind oncolytic virotherapy. AI in Cancer Care: Artificial Intelligence Can Help Doctors Detect and Diagnose Cancer, Suggests Study.

What is Oncolytic Virotherapy?

Oncolytic virotherapy (OVT) is an innovative cancer treatment that uses genetically modified or naturally occurring viruses to selectively infect and destroy cancer cells while sparing healthy cells. As per the Cancer Research Institute, once inside the cancer cells, these viruses replicate, causing the tumour cells to burst and die. This process releases new viral particles into the surrounding environment, where they can infect additional cancer cells. OVT also has an added benefit: as cancer cells die, they release antigens that alert the immune system to the presence of cancer. National Cancer Awareness Day 2024 Date, History and Significance: All You Need to Know About the Day That Raises Awareness About the Deadly Disease.

This triggers an immune response, helping the body recognise and attack any remaining cancer cells more effectively. In this way, OVT combines direct cancer cell destruction with an immune-activating effect, making it a promising two-pronged approach to cancer treatment. Some oncolytic viruses, like T-VEC (talimogene laherparepvec), have already been approved for use in treating specific types of cancer, such as metastatic melanoma.

While still in the experimental stages, OVT has shown success in clinical trials for cancers like melanoma and breast cancer, as in the case of Beata Halassy. Although no oncolytic viruses have been officially approved for cancer treatment yet, researchers are optimistic that OVT could become a major part of future cancer therapies, especially for hard-to-treat or late-stage cancers.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 13, 2024 05:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).