prostate-report.org

An effective viral treatment for localized prostate cancer

Reovirus is a double-stranded RNA virus that is widespread in the environment. Under normal circumstances it appears to cause no significant illnesses in humans, but it does appear to infect and kill prostate cancer cells in laboratory studies while having no harmful effects on non-cancerous human cells.
In March, researchers at University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada reported results of a very small clinical trial of the use of reovirus to treat 6 patients who had been diagnosed with organ-confined prostate cancer. The use of reovirus as a potential treatment modality for prostate cancer has not previously been described, and in this study evidence of in vitro and in vivo activity against prostate cancer was seen both in preclinical models and in six patients.

The study findings suggest that reovirus therapy may provide a promising novel treatment for prostate cancer and also imply a possible role for viral immune targeting of tumor