Patients with inoperable prostate disease recover after single dose of drug

[steven johnson]

I am suspicious of magic bullets and anecdotal miracle cures but the promise of genetic engineering has been such drugs. This one seems promising even with the "Cancer: shock breakthrough" hyped headline. Caveat emptor.

By Jeremy Laurance, Health editor
Saturday, 20 June 2009

Two patients with inoperable prostate cancer have made dramatic recoveries after receiving one dose of an experimental drug that is creating excitement among cancer specialists.

Rodger Nelson and Fructuoso Solano-Revuelta were diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer and sought treatment at the Mayo Clinic.
They were told the disease had spread beyond the prostate. Mr Nelson's cancer was encroaching on the abdomen and Mr Solano-Revuelta's tumour was the size of a golf ball. Patients in such condition are told they may have only months to live, and are normally only offered palliative care. But after one infusion of the drug ipilimumab, a monoclonal antibody that stimulates the immune system, given with conventional hormone therapy, their tumours shrank enough to be surgically removed. Both men have since made a full recovery and returned to their businesses.

Michael Blute, the surgeon who operated on Mr Nelson, said at one point doctors feared they might have the wrong patient: "I was cutting away scar tissue trying to find cancer cells. The pathologist was checking samples as we proceeded and sent word back asking if we had the right patient. He had a hard time finding any cancer. I have never seen anything like this before. The pathologists were floored."




Cancer: shock breakthrough
Patients with inoperable prostate disease recover after single dose of drug>

[elleng]

1. The docs/scientists, of course are not responsible for the headline!

Sent this info to family member. Lets hope.

[LaurenG]

2. On edit: It appears ipilimumab is effective! This is great news!

Evidence of tumor regression with prolonged time to progression has been seen in patients with melanoma who received either of the CTLA-4 antibodies <3, 4> and durable responses have been observed with ipilimumab in patients with melanoma <5>, ovarian cancer <6>, prostate cancer <7>, and renal cell cancer <8>. Interestingly, antitumor responses may be characterized by short-term progression followed by delayed regression, and an important, possibly unique, clinical characteristic of anti–CTLA-4 antibodies is that the duration of clinical responses and even stable disease is often quite prolonged.

ipilimumab articles http://theoncologist.alphamedpress.org/cgi/content/abstract/12/7/864

your link was broken, so here it is. :)
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/cancer-shock-breakthrough-1710727.html

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

3. Very good news.