Dr. Mohr and a doctoral student, Matt Mulvey, then engineered a way for their virus to evade the immune system, making it an even more potent cancer-killing agent. Unlike chemotherapy, which can diminish in effectiveness over time, oncolytic viruses multiply in the body and gain strength as the infection becomes established. In addition to attacking cancer cells directly, some also produce an immune response that targets tumors. Today, several potential cancer-fighting viruses are in trials, including two in Phase 3 trials. An engineered form of vaccinia, the viral agent that helped eradicate smallpox, is being tested against advanced liver cancer, the third leading cause of cancer deaths globally. In a recent trial, survival for patients treated with high doses of the virus, called JX-594, doubled to 14 months from 7, compared with that of patients treated with low doses.
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