Hope for cancer victims

Press, 6 March 1985, Page 40

Hope for cancer victims

NZPA-Reuter Los Angeles Human tests will begin in Japan soon on a cancerfighting substance that has halted cancers in laboratory mice and could offer new hope to cancer victims, a United States medical centre said. The naturally occurring substance, known as tumour necrosis factor (T.N.F.), has been isolated by researchers and tests have shown it destroys human cancer tissue in mice, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles City of Hope Medical Centre said.

“Experiments have shown that T.N.F. selectively destroys malignant cells and is effective against various types of solid tumours. It is especially effective against lung, breast, stomach, colon, nasal and cervical cancers,” the spokeswoman said. Sbe said it left normal cells virtually intact. “We don’t understand the mechanism of T.N.F. We know it zeros in on cancerous cells but we don’t know how.” The American Cancer Society was cautiously optimistic about the cancerfighting substance.

"Research is hopeful but it is still at the animal stage. Research on animals can be hopeful but on humans it can be verv disappointing,” a spokes’woman said. She was reluctant to compare T.N.F. with interferon, which is also being tested as a cancer-fighting substance. “Like interferon, the body does produce T.N.F. so therefore it would not be toxic. It could be better than interferon or there could be nothing to it. We must wait and see.”