Sci. & Tech.
Scientists develop UV technology 'to treat cancer'

London (PTI): It can be called a medical breakthrough which is guaranteed to bring hope to millions of cancer victims -- a new technology to destroy tumour.

Yes, scientists in Britain have developed the cancer fighting technology which uses beams of ultraviolet light to activate antibodies which specifically attack and destroy tumours, the 'Daily Mail' reported here on Tuesday.

"I would describe this development as the equivalent of ultra-specific magic bullets," lead researcher Professor Colin Self of Newcastle University was quoted by the British daily as saying.

According to him, the new technique could be used for tumours close to the skin, such as breast cancer, and for any cancers accessible by a light probe. These include stomach and bowel cancers as well as ovarian cancer.

The researchers tested the technology successfully on six volunteers who fell gravely ill at Northwick Park Hospital because the antibodies they activated affected their entire body, driving their immune systems into overload.

To get over this problem, the Newcastle team cloaked antibodies in an organic oil which rendered them inactive until illuminated by ultra-violet rays. By using a probe to shine a light on the tumour, the antibodies at the right place in the body were brought to life.

The activated antibodies then caused immune cells in the blood called T-cells to attack the cancer.

"This could mean that a patient coming in for treatment of bladder cancer would receive an injection of the cloaked antibodies. She would sit in the waiting room for an hour and then come come back in for treatment by light.

"Just a few minutes of the light therapy directed at the region of the tumour would activate the T-cells causing her body's own immune cells to attack the tumour," Professor Self was quoted as saying.

Sci. & Tech.

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