Suicide gene therapy kills prostate tumor cells

[Janis Kinne]

Click here to read an article from Science Daily on a promising treatment that is being investigated by researchers at Houston Methodist Hospital.

 

Note this article reports on the long term outcomes of a Phase 2 trial which was conducted between 1999 and 2003.   A Phase 3 trial (which is required for this particular gene therapy to be approved by regulators) is already underway.

[Geoff Buttfield]

Further reading of the actual trial shows that Arm A was Gleason <7, (ie. 6 or less),PSA<10: suggesting an initial diagnoses of 'localised'. (candidates for active surveillance?) Arm B was >/= G.7, PSA >/=10, but no age or disease statistics are given (in the abstract.) Arm B were placed on Hormone therapy.Each group received 76gy of Radiotherapy 'to the prostate'!!!! (seems awful high if not the whole pelvis)

Therefore I find their 5 year overall survival rate of 97%(A.) and 94%(B.) unsurprising. However, the use of Herpes Simplex (Cold Sore) virus as a marker for the immune system is interesting.

Th Abstract for this trial can be found here-

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13566-015-0239-y

[Paul Edwards]

Click here for a report of this trial in the New Prostate Cancer Infolink which suggests that "there are real questions [about this trial] which need real answers."