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Zika virus could be used to treat aggressive brain cancers, say US scientists

07/09/2017

Zika virus could be used to treat aggressive brain cancers, say US scientists

The harmful Zika virus, which is spread by mosquitoes and causes devastating brain damage in babies, could be used to treat aggressive brain cancer in adults, according to US scientists.


Up until now, Zika has only been seen as a major global health threat, but the new research could see it become a remedy.


The scientists say the virus can be used to selectively infect and destroy hard-to-treat cancerous cells in adult brains.


In mice studies, the Zika virus was seen to successfully shrink aggressive tumours, yet left other brain cells unscathed.


While human trials are still quite a way off, laboratory tests show that the virus works on human cells, and experts believe the Zika virus holds a huge amount of potential. They say it could be injected into a human brain at the same time as surgery to remove life-threatening tumours.


Some brain cancers are fast growing and spread quickly through the brain. This makes it very difficult to see where the tumour finishes and healthy tissue begins.


As an extra precaution, the team from Washington University School of Medicine and the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have already begun modifying the Zika virus to make it less potent than the regular strain.


Researcher Dr Michael Diamond said: "It looks like there's a silver lining to Zika. This virus that targets cells that are very important for brain growth in babies, we could use that now to target growing tumours."

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