IT WON’T actually cure cancer, but a gene therapy has helped dogs with various malignant tumours live longer, better lives. If it works in humans, the therapy might bring similar benefits for people with cancer.
Ruxandra Draghia-Akli and her colleagues at VGX Pharmaceuticals in The Woodlands, Texas, inserted DNA containing the gene for growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) into the muscles of 43 pet dogs that were undergoing drug therapy for a range of different cancers. GHRH boosts production of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1, both of which build muscle.
Three months later, 54 per cent of the dogs…
