Transcript IRON MEN
Angelo Butera BME 181 February 19th 2013 Cancer of the mesothelium (protective organ covering) Most common in the pleura Produces pleural effusion (additional fluid) Caused by as little as 1-3 months of exposure to asbestos Survival: Average <2 years, up to 5 with radical treatments. Developed by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Eureka Therapeutics to treat mesothelioma As proteins are broken down inside cells, fragments (peptides) are brought to cell surface. GL-ONC1 is a lab-created antibody that can read these peptides, effectively letting it “see” inside the cell. This allows it to target cells based on the internal proteins, where up until this point we could only target external proteins. WT1 is a protein that is overexpressed in many leukemias, myeloma, breast, ovarian, rectal cancer. It is an oncogenic protein (promotes cancer development) Found in very few healthy cells, and in small amounts. Mesothelioma has a very high amount of WT1 present in the cancerous cells. Doctors will take the modified immune system cells (GL-ONC1), and attempt to use them in combination with radiation, chemo and a variety of other drugs to combat various cancers. Human trials started earlier this month, with 5 patients taking part All of these patients had mesothelioma, or a similarly severe cancer. 3/5 have gone into long-term remission, with one entering remission within 8 days of receiving treatment. Long term effects, etc. still must be studied, but it seems promising. Gherardi, James. "Lynchburg Doctor: New Cancer Treatment Could Change Medicine For - WSET.com - ABC13." Lynchburg Doctor: New Cancer Treatment Could Change Medicine For - WSET.com - ABC13. ABC News, 29 Mar. 2013. Web. 31 Mar. 2013. Hool, Caitlin. "New Monoclonal Antibody Developed That Can Target Proteins inside Cancer Cells." New Monoclonal Antibody Developed That Can Target Proteins inside Cancer Cells. EurekAlert, 13 Mar. 2013. Web. 31 Mar. 2013. Meredith, Nancy. "Pleural Mesothelioma Patients Wanted to Test Novel Treatment in Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Clinical Trial." Mesothelioma Help. N.p., 5 Mar. 2013. Web. 31 Mar. 2013. "Mesothelioma." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Mar. 2013. Web. 31 Mar. 2013. "Physicians at NYC Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Begin "First-InMan" Drug Therapy on Mesothelioma Patients." SFGate. N.p., 6 Mar. 2013. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.