Anti-cancer gene therapy shows promise

SEOUL, June 9 (UPI) -- South Korean medical scientists say a new lung cancer therapy employing a vaporized viral vector has shown early promise in a mouse model of lung cancer.

The researchers at South Korea's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said the vaporized viral vector is used to deliver a cancer-inhibiting molecule directly to lung tissue.

Although gene therapy is an area of great promise, the scientists said delivery mechanisms have proven problematic for effective delivery of genetic therapy to lung tissues.

"Aerosol delivery targets the lungs specifically and represents a non-invasive alternative for targeting genes to the lung," Professor Myung-Haing Cho, who led the research, said. "The delivery of genes via aerosol holds promise for the treatment of a broad spectrum of pulmonary disorders and offers numerous advantages over more invasive modes of delivery."

The results of Cho's research are to appear in the June 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.