06.04.2011 | FOCUS
In cancer, the immune system falls asleep like the fairytale princess. Researchers are looking for the prince to come to the rescue.
“We all have cancer cells, but as long as the immune system eliminates them, we do not get the disease. Cancer develops when our immune response fails,” says Professor Kimmo Porkka, chief physician of the haematology clinic at the Helsinki University Central Hospital.
Previously, it was believed that when you get cancer, the cells involved in the immune system cease to exist.
“We have managed to prove that at least in leukaemia, the immune system cells fighting cancer are still there, but they have fallen asleep like Sleeping Beauty. We are trying to find the prince to come and wake them up.”
Porkka and his team are on the right track.
“We have already managed to find a couple of princes. They are very effective drugs that are targeted at the genetic deviations in malignant cells, but also stimulate the immune system to restart the fight against cancer.”
Targeted drugs do the trick
Targeted drugs are the key to tomorrow’s cancer treatment. Malignant blood disorders such as leukaemia are the first diseases for which these drugs have been developed.
This is because cancerous tissue in blood and bone marrow is easily accessible for research. Ample blood and bone marrow samples can be taken repeatedly before, during and after the treatment. That, in turn, facilitates detailed dissection of cancer-causing molecular events.
The cancer cells of each patient are unique. After making a detailed genetic profile of the samples, one can identify the patients that are likely to benefit from a particular drug.
As Porkka puts it, there is a revolution going on in the medication and treatment of leukaemia, thanks to the new methods based on genetic technologies that enable individual treatment.
From lethal to chronic disease
Porkka is convinced the new biobank being set up in the premises of the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) at the Meilahti campus – where the Helsinki University Central Hospital is located – will be a crucial asset for cancer research.
The biobank is a professionally managed archive of human-derived samples, where samples of cancer tissue are stored for researchers to use.
Some of the most important national biobanking resources are located on the Meilahti campus. This makes it not only the most important hub for biomedical research in Finland but unique also on a global scale.
“Luckily, Finnish cancer patients are extremely willing to contribute to medical research. They allow their blood samples to be stored in a biobank and participate in clinical trials of new drugs,” says Porkka.
“Ten years from now, many cancers will have become chronic diseases similar to high blood pressure and diabetes. This will be enabled by the new drugs that are being developed today.”
By Leena Koskenlaakso
Photo by Juha Salminen
The story was originally published in Focus Finland on the Economy and Technology 2011. Focus is produced by Sanoma Magazines Finland Custom Publishing. Read the magazine at www.focusmagazine.fi.
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