Strains Of Measles Virus Effective For Prostate Cancer Treatment

According to new study, certain vaccine strain derivative of measles virus including MV-CEA may be effective for prostate cancer treatment. The findings suggest that this kind of treatment with virus vaccine is called virotherapy and it can effectively defeat prostate cancer cells.

Prostate cancer, leading cause of death in males in western world, is at present second most common cause for cancer related deaths among American men. The study has found that almost 186,320 new cases are diagnosed with prostate cancer, in which almost 28,660 deaths expected, as per 2008 record.

 A significant portion of these prostate cancer patients eventually relapse, with a 5-year failure rate for treatment ranging from 14 to 34 percent. No specific effective curative therapy or treatment is currently available for metastatic prostate cancer or locally advanced cancer.

According to Evanthia Galanis, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic, senior author of the study, “based on safety ofmeasles virus strain derivatives against tumor types as well as preclinical results, these viral strains can be effective for androgen resistant tumors and also for clinical testing against advanced prostate cancer”.  

These particular strains of measles virus are new therapeutic agents against prostate cancer and can be combined with conventional treatment methods.

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