FDA fast-tracks treatment that uses polio virus to fight brain cancer

It's my understanding that this COULD be used for different kinds of cancers, if it pans out:

The Food and Drug Administration has given so-called "breakthrough" status to a treatment that uses the once-feared polio virus to target aggressive forms of brain cancer, in the hope of speeding it to market.

The therapy, developed at Duke University, hopes to use the virus’ debilitating properties to help fight cancer instead of harming its host, CBS News reported Thursday.


“All human cancers ... develop a shield of protective measures that make them invisible to this immune system,” Gromeier told CBS. “By infecting the tumor, we are actually removing this protective shield and enabling the immune system to attack."

While the altered polio virus initiates the fight against the cancer cells, its ability to alert the immune system to the trouble is what often finishes off the virus, the network reported.

Cross-posted in GD

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/05/13/fda-gives-approval-to-using-polio-to-fight-terminal-brain-cancer.html