Reovirus Used as a Cancer Killer

A phase I/II clinical trial is expected to start in 2008 for patients with metastatic ovarian, peritoneal, or fallopian tube cancers using a human reovius. Reovirus does not cause disease in humans, and has demonstrated strong anti-cancer activity against many types of cancer cells, including ovarian cancer cells.

Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death for women in the United States alone. Each year, the American Cancer Society estimates that 22,000 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and 15,000 will die from the disease. "Sadly, more than half of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer will die within five years,” said Dr. Brad Thompson, CEO of Oncolytics Biotech (Calgary, Canada), a company researching a potential treatment for cancer. "If the cancer is detected in the early stages before it has spread, women have more that a 90% chance of surviving beyond five years. Unfortunately, only 20% of ovarian cancer cases are discovered in the early stages.”

The U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI; Bethesda, MD, USA) is sponsoring the trial using Oncolytics' proprietary formulation of the human reovirus, called Reolysin. "When the reovirus enters cancer cells, it produces thousands of copies of itself, causing the cell to burst,” explained Dr. Thompson. However, the reovirus can replicate only in cancer cells with mutations along a signaling pathway in the cell called the Ras pathway, while leaving normal cells unharmed. Approximately two-thirds of all human cancers express this specific mutation and are therefore a potential target for Reolysin treatment.

The clinical trial is being conducted at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (Columbus, USA) and is expected to enroll up to 70 patients with metastatic ovarian, peritoneal, or Fallopian tube cancers.

"We are excited the NCI has chosen to sponsor this trial using Reolysin,” said Dr. Thompson, "Hopefully, their findings will demonstrate that Reolysin can be used as an effective weapon for women fighting the advanced stages of this deadly disease.”


Related Links:
Oncolytics Biotech
National Cancer Institute
Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center