Cancer: hope for transplants
posted in Cancer |
In the granulocytes could be the key to successfully fight cancer.
The investigation of a U.S. scientist Results indicated that immune cells taken from healthy person can be used to battle cancer in another person.
The study, published in the journal New Scientist, says that some people seem to have cells that have a greater ability to tackle cervical cancer cells in test tubes.
Dr. Zheng Cui, who was in charge of the investigation, now wants to transplant more potent “granulocytes” patients.
The finding has surprised some experts believed that granulocytes played a minor role in the fight against cancer.
The body’s immune system helps fight infection, but also plays a key role in destroying cancer cells.
Test
The idea of receiving immune cells, either from yourself or from a donor, is not new.
However, the investigation at the Medical University of Wake Forest, North Carolina, points to a different cell as a potential savior.
And Granulocytes are normally associated with the body’s response to bacterial infections.
In his research, Dr Cui took blood samples from 100 volunteers and mixed in the laboratory just their granulocytes with cervical cancer cells.
He found that one sample appeared to kill 97% of cancer cells in just two days, while the other side of the scale, after 48 hours, one sample had destroyed only 2% of cancer cells.
Patients with cancer provided granulocytes, which had a below-average ability to kill cancer cells.
So did people who reported being stressed and over 50 years.
Even more surprising was that even the time of year seemed to have an effect on the potency of granulocytes.
“Nobody seems to have the ability to kill cancer cells during the winter months,” said Dr. Cui.
In another study found that granulocytes from a strain of mice completely resistant to cancer cured the disease when they were transplanted into other mice.
Dr Cui now plans human trials to see if donor granulocytes - which are plentiful and easily harvested - can have a similar effect.
Risk of attack
However, a British expert warned of the potential risks of the experiments.
Although granulocyte transfusions are already makes to patients with impaired immune systems, they are normally irradiated to make sure that no other immune cells to the patient by mistake.
If this happens it can cause “graft-host disease in which the donor cells recognize the new body as an invader and launch an assault with occasionally fatal consequences.
Dr John Gribben, an immunologist at St. Bartholomew Hospital in London, said he was surprised if Dr Cui receives approval for the transplantation of “live” cells into a patient with cancer.
“From my point of view is more than a theoretical risk,” he said.
But he added that research results were surprising, adding that more work needed to be done to confirm that the granulocytes were in a wider variety of cancers, not just cervical cancers.
“There are enough people considering therapy for cancer cells, but not working on granulocytes.”