Bacterial biosurgery shows promise for reducing the size of inoperable tumors

Deep within most tumors lie areas that remain untouched by chemotherapy and radiation. These troublesome spots lack the blood and oxygen needed for traditional therapies to work, but provide the perfect target for a new cancer treatment using bacteria that thrive in oxygen-poor conditions. Now, researchers have shown that injections of a weakened version of one such anaerobic bacteria -- the microbe Clostridium novyi -- can shrink tumors in rats, pet dogs, and a human patient.

The findings from BioMed Valley Discoveries and a nationwide team of collaborators demonstrate that C. novyi-NT, a version without the ability to make certain toxins, can act as a new type of "biosurgery" to eat away tumors in hard to reach places. The bacteria excise tumor tissue in a precise, localized way that spares surrounding normal tissue. The study -- which represents a new take on an approach first attempted a century ago -- indicates that further testing of this agent in selected patients is warranted.

"We have encouraging signs that this bacteria could be used to treat certain inoperable tumors, and that could give hope to some patients who don't have any other options," said Saurabh Saha, M.D., Ph.D., a longtime cancer researcher at BioMed Valley Discoveries and senior author of the study. "But we are still in the early stages, and need to further assess the safety and efficacy of the treatment, as well as explore how well it works in combination with other cancer therapies."

The study was published August 13, 2014, in Science Translational Medicine ("Intratumoral injection of Clostridium novyi-NT spores induces antitumor responses ").

http://www.nanowerk.com/news2/biotech/newsid=36926.php

Bacterial biosurgery shows promise for reducing the size of inoperable tumors

Bacterial biosurgery shows promise for reducing the size of inoperable tumors

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