Modified Herpes Virus Found to Shrink Deadly Skin Cancers in Clinical Trial

Scientists have hijacked the herpes virus and turned it into a cancer-busting ally.

A decade after the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first virus-based cancer therapy, another potentially life-saving treatment is on the horizon.

A genetically modified herpes simplex virus, called RP1, has now been shown to destroy advanced melanoma tumors, even when they exist deep in the body, according to a phase 1/2 clinical trial.

The trial involved injecting RP1 into melanoma tumors on or just below the surface of the skin, or deeper in the body like in the lungs or liver. In patients who responded positively to the treatment, even tumors not directly injected with the medicine began to shrink.