英国研究出可预防癌症的普适疫苗

Vaccines  against  a  wide  range  of  viruses  could  one  day  prevent  one  in  10  cancers  in  the  UK,  suggests  a  new  report.  And  the  impact  could  be  even  greater  in  the  developing  world,  where  an  estimated  one  in  four  cases  of  cancer  is  linked  to  infections.

Such  vaccines  could  prevent  hundreds  of  thousands  of  cases  of  cancer  each  year,  according  to  the  non-profit  organisation  Cancer  Research  UK.  Its  report,  released  on  Monday,  notes  that  roughly  18%,  or  1.8  million  cases,  of  all  new  cancers  worldwide  each  year  are  linked  to  infections,  although  no  vaccine  exists  against  many  of  the  related  viruses.

But  experts  stress  that  you  cannot  “catch”  cancer,  and  the  viruses  linked  to  the  disease  are  not  easily  transmissible.  "If  you  chat  to  your  neighbour  with  cancer  you're  not  going  to  catch  it.  The  cancer  itself  is  not  infectious,"  says  Rob  Newton,  an  epidemiologist  for  Cancer  Research  UK.  "You  don't  vaccinate  against  cancer  –  you  vaccinate  against  the  infectious  agents  that  cause  it,"  he  explains.

Viruses  can  disrupt  a  cell's  inner  machinery,  including  its  DNA,  leading  to  the  uncontrolled  cellular  replication  that  gives  rise  to  tumours.

Hepatitis  B

Newton  says  that  many  liver  cancers  could  be  prevented  with  the  already  available  vaccine  against  hepatitis  B.  This  virus,  which  causes  inflammation  of  the  liver,  is  especially  prevalent  in  southeast  Asia  and  sub-Saharan  Africa,  where  there  is  a  great  need  for  vaccine  distribution.

People  with  chronic  hepatitis  B  have  a  20-  to  100-times'  higher  risk  of  liver  cancer  than  uninfected  individuals.  And  about  50%  of  liver  cancers  worldwide  test  positive  for  the  hepatitis  B  virus.

Epidemiologists  also  say  that  almost  all  cases  of  cervical  cancer  test  positive  for  human  papilloma  virus  (HPV),  which  infects  cells  of  the  skin  or  inner  mucosal  surfaces,  and  is  sexually  transmitted.  Newton  says  that  studies  of  US  university  students  found  that  about  50%  of  individuals  are  carriers  of  HPV.  However,  only  certain  strains  put  women  at  higher  risk  of  cervical  cancer. (责任编辑：泉水)

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英国研究出可预防癌症的普适疫苗