The use of gene editing techniques such as CRISPR-Cas9 (the so-called "molecular cut-and-paste" system) to manipulate DNA and treat cancer represents one of the most promising areas of research. However, it is not currently applied in a widespread or generalized manner to directly eliminate tumors due to significant technical, safety, and biological complexity challenges.
A major difficulty lies in accurately directing this ‘cut-and-paste’ mechanism to every cancer cell. To effectively eradicate cancer, it would be necessary to edit the DNA of each and every tumor cell, including those that have spread throughout the body (metastases). Delivering CRISPR precisely to billions of diseased cells without affecting healthy cells remains an अत्य challenging task at present.
The objective of this work is to simplify antiviral tumor therapy and make it more accessible by proposing the deliberate and benign infection of the entire cancer-affected organ. This is achieved through viruses engineered using ‘cut-and-paste’ gene editing techniques. Through the mechanism of viral transduction, the DNA of all cells within the infected organ—both healthy and cancerous—is modified. The aim is to ensure that tumor cell DNA is also altered, specifically targeting and normalizing their uncontrolled proliferation mechanisms. At the conclusion of the process, the subject would experience only a mild, benign flu-like infection.