Scripture of the Day:
Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:31
The following is just a short article that I found interesting and encouraging. It lifts me up that the work to cure this disease is endless and ongoing. I've read several articles that say the results are encouraging and that is always good news. The link to this article is at the end.
How killer cells take out tumors
June 2, 2017 by Fabio Bergamin
The use of immunotherapy to treat cancer is celebrating its first successes – but there are still many knowledge gaps in the underlying mechanisms of action. In a study of mice with soft tissue tumors, ETH researchers have now shown how endogenous killer cells track down the tumors with the help of dormant viruses.
The promising drug is known as F8-TNF. When injected into the bloodstream, it lures killer cells from the body's immune system towards sarcomas. The killer cells then destroy the tumors. Researchers from ETH Zurich, led by Professor Dario Neri at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, developed F8-TNF four years ago. Since then, they have been able to show that it can completely cure sarcomas in mice when combined with a chemotherapeutic agent. Such an effective treatment cannot be achieved by chemotherapy alone or with other therapeutic approaches. Now, a drug closely related to F8-TNF is being tested as part of clinical trials in humans.
Consisting of two sub-units, the F8-TNF molecule works rather like a store detective: just as a detective tracks down a shoplifter and detains it until the police arrive, the molecule identifies cancer cells using its F8 sub-unit and then uses its TNF part to lure killer cells (cytotoxic T cells). TNF is an immune system messenger.
Implanted into the genome
Much of the molecule's mechanism of action was hitherto unclear, but the scientists in Neri's group have now succeeded in working it out. They wanted to find out how the killer cells recognize the tumor after they are lured to it. Although the messenger TNF alerts the killer cells to the tumor's presence, it does not provide them with a specific tumor identifier.
The scientists discovered that the killer cells called by F8-TNF are guided by proteins from specific dormant viruses (endogenous retroviruses). The genetic blueprint of these viruses has implanted itself into the mouse genome during evolution. In many cancer cells, the viral proteins are brought to life. Fragments of these retroviral proteins on the surface of tumor cells allow the killer cells to distinguish cancer cells from healthy cells.
IF you are making this journey as I am, may God bless you with His healing touch. I know He loves you.
