Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the Western world. The limited
successes of available treatments for cancer means that new strategies need to be
developed. The possibility of modifying the cancer cell with the introduction of genetic
material opens the way to a new approach based on gene therapy. There are still many
technical difficulties to overcome, but recent advances in the molecular and cellular biology
of gene transfer have made it likely that gene therapy will soon start to play an increasing
role in clinical practice, particularly in the treatment of cancer. Gene therapy will probably
be the therapeutic option in cases in which conventional treatments such as surgery,
radiotherapy and chemotherapy have failed. The development of modified vectors, and an
improved understanding of interactions between the vector and the human host, is
generating inventions that are being protected by patents due to the considerable interest of
industry for their possible commercialization. We review the latest strategies, patented
and/or under clinical trial, in cancer gene therapy. These include patents that cover the use
of modified vectors to increase the security and specificity, recombining adenovirus that
leads to loss or gain of gene function, activation of the patient's own immune cells to
eliminate cancer cells by expression of molecules that enhance immune responses,
silencing genes related to the development of drug resistance in patients, inhibition of
angiogenesis of solid tumors by targeting the tumor vasculature, and the development of
enzymes that destroy viral or cancerous genetic material.
Keywords: Angiogenesis, apoptosis, cancer therapy, chemoprotection, clinical
trials, combined therapy, corrective gene therapy, drug resistance, future
developments, gene therapy, immunomodulatory gene therapy, non-viral vectors,
p-53, patents, perspectives, recent advances, siRNA therapy, suicide gene therapy,
toxic genes, viral vectors.
