Cancer breakthrough raises hopes of cure for deadly disease
A NEW way of using DNA to kill cancer cells has raised hopes of finding a cure for the disease.
The method worked against human cervical cancer and breast cancer cells, as well as malignant melanoma cells in mice.
It involved injecting artificial, hairclip-shaped DNA into cancer cells to provoke an immune response.
That response not only killed the cancer cells but also prevented them growing further.
The researchers say their method, tested successfully in a Japanese lab, is ground-breaking and could herald a new era of cancer drugs.
Their artificial DNA overcame problems with drugs being able to distinguish between healthy and cancerous cells in the body.
Researcher Professor Akimitsu Okamoto, from the University of Tokyo, said: “We thought that if we can create new drugs that work by a different mechanism from conventional drugs, they may be effective against cancers that have been untreatable up to now.
“The results are good news for doctors, drug discovery researchers and patients, as we believe it will give them new options for drug development.”