[NEWS] 殺病毒，止癌症

[SciAm] Kill the Virus, Stop the Cancer

"Researchers have for the first time shown that as many as 1.3 million cases of cancer a year may one day be successfully treated or even prevented by targeting and destroying the viruses that cause them.

Scientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in New York City say the finding could pave the way for conquering human cancers that are linked to preexisting viral infections, among them liver cancer (caused by the hepatitis B and C viruses), cervical cancer (from human papillomavirus) and lymphomas caused by the Epstein–Barr virus.

They key, they say, is to find and destroy the viruses before they turn cancerous. In an attempt to do this, the researchers used a technique known as radioimmunotherapy in which radioisotopes (unstable elements that release radiation) mounted on antibodies (protein molecules akin to infection search-and-destroy missiles) are injected into the body. Once inside, researchers found that the antibodies zeroed in on their targets—viral antigens—and the radioisotopes destroyed nearby cancer cells without damaging surrounding healthy tissue."

有沒有這麼神奇阿，可以控制 radioisotope 到接近癌細胞的時候才制出放射線？如果控制不夠準確的話，還是會殺死其他好的細胞，不過這樣最壞應該也只是回到目前的治療況狀，如果能控制到只殺死癌細胞的話，算是一個加分，也許能讓病人的免疫力不會減弱吧？