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HIV as Cancer Treatment Discovered

Initial tests have shown that the dreaded HIV virus may be about to become a treatment for cancer as not only it can minimize but even help cure the most common form of leukemia.

The Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, led by Dr. Carl June, has been experimenting with using a harmless version of the HIV virus combined with genetically modified white blood cells as a new way to fight cancer. The cells which were taken from patients are modified with new genes that make them target cancer cells, and because they multiply once injected, they will act as a small army inside the body.

The initial results have surprised the research team. The modified cells have acted like serial killers, multiplying and killing all of the cancer cells in two patients, while reducing them by 70% in a third. An astounding five pounds of cancer cells have disappeared from each patient. And as an added bonus, the modified cells that remain in the patient’s body have been seen to reactivate and kill new cancer cells as long as 12 months after they were first injected.

This is a breakthrough in treating leukemia compared to its usual procedures like chemotherapy and radiation therapy which have side effects and complications. With the newly discovered treatment, a single injection of the modified white blood cells do the rest of the work. This is definitely great news for leukemia patients as the disease has been killing hundreds of thousands of adults and children every year.

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