CD47 antibodies shrinks tumours of seven cancers
Figure 1: Cancer incidence rates for each age group (AIHW, 2010)
Cancer is a serious health problem, plaguing communities around the world especially Australia. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2010), 1 in 3 males and 1 in 4 females will be diagnosed with cancer by the age of 75 years. In addition, cancer remains a significant cause of death, accounting for 29% of deaths in Australia and 13% worldwide. However, developments in treatments, particularly the advent of targeted therapies has improved overall survival and reduced mortality in most cancers.
One such targeted therapy has been generating media attention recently, as it involves a single antibody, CD47 and its ability to abate the tumour size of seven different cancers. The study was led by the Stanford University School of Medicine where Dr Irving Weissman and his colleagues published their success in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Journal.
The findings of this study were published in Medical News Today, an online website, which claimed anti-CD47 antibodies are the first antibody treatments which can target a variety of cancer types. The article stated that anti-CD47 antibodies were able to reduce the incidence of metastasis in mice models and were able to almost “cure” most of the tumours being investigated.
This website endeavours to examine the nature of this medical breakthrough through the following:
One such targeted therapy has been generating media attention recently, as it involves a single antibody, CD47 and its ability to abate the tumour size of seven different cancers. The study was led by the Stanford University School of Medicine where Dr Irving Weissman and his colleagues published their success in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Journal.
The findings of this study were published in Medical News Today, an online website, which claimed anti-CD47 antibodies are the first antibody treatments which can target a variety of cancer types. The article stated that anti-CD47 antibodies were able to reduce the incidence of metastasis in mice models and were able to almost “cure” most of the tumours being investigated.
This website endeavours to examine the nature of this medical breakthrough through the following:
- An introduction to the experimental design of the study
- A description of the biochemistry behind the discovery
- The historical background
- An evaluation of the significance of this breakthrough
- Focus areas to improve understanding
- A glossary of key words and abbreviations
- References for further reading
S.Jaffer, MJ.Lagamayo and S.Wong | Copyright ©2012