Oncolytic virus therapy in cancer: A current review

In view of the advancement in the understanding about the most diverse types of cancer and consequently a relentless search for a cure and increased survival rates of cancer patients,finding a therapy that is able to combat the mechanism of aggression of this disease is extremely important.Thus,oncolytic viruses(OVs)have demonstrated great benefits in the treatment of cancer because it mediates antitumor effects in several ways.Viruses can be used to infect cancer cells,especially over normal cells,to present tumor-associated antigens,to activate“danger signals”that generate a less immune-tolerant tumor microenvironment,and to serve transduction vehicles for expression of inflammatory and immunomodulatory cytokines.The success of therapies using OVs was initially demonstrated by the use of the genetically modified herpes virus,talimogene laherparepvec,for the treatment of melanoma.At this time,several OVs are being studied as a potential treatment for cancer in clinical trials.However,it is necessary to be aware of the safety and possible adverse effects of this therapy;after all,an effective treatment for cancer should promote regression,attack the tumor,and in the meantime induce minimal systemic repercussions.In this manuscript,we will present a current review of the mechanism of action of OVs,main clinical uses,updates,and future perspectives on this treatment.

Highlighting COVID-19:What the imaging exams show about the disease

Coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19),a global emergency,is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.The gold standard for its diagnosis is the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction,but considering the high number of infected people,the low availability of this diagnostic tool in some contexts,and the limitations of the test,other tools that aid in the identification of the disease are necessary.In this scenario,imaging exams such as chest X-ray(CXR)and computed tomography(CT)have played important roles.CXR is useful for assessing disease progression because it allows the detection of extensive consolidations,besides being a fast and cheap method.On the other hand,CT is more sensitive for detecting lung changes in the early stages of the disease and is also useful for assessing disease progression.Of note,ground-glass opacities are the main COVID-19-related CT findings.Positron emission tomography combined with CT can be used to evaluate chronic and substantial damage to the lungs and other organs;however,it is an expensive test.Lung ultrasound(LUS)has been shown to be a promising technique in that context as well,being useful in the screening and monitoring of patients,disease classification,and management related to mechanical ventilation.Moreover,LUS is an inexpensive alternative available at the bedside.Finally,magnetic resonance imaging,although not usually requested,allows the detection of pulmonary,cardiovascular,and neurological abnormalities associated with COVID-19.Furthermore,it is important to consider the challenges faced in the radiology field in the adoption of control measures to prevent infection and in the follow-up of post-COVID-19 patients.

Immunotherapy in glioblastoma treatment:Current state and future prospects

Glioblastoma remains as the most common and aggressive malignant brain tumor,standing with a poor prognosis and treatment prospective.Despite the aggressive standard care,such as surgical resection and chemoradiation,median survival rates are low.In this regard,immunotherapeutic strategies aim to become more attractive for glioblastoma,considering its recent advances and approaches.In this review,we provide an overview of the current status and progress in immunotherapy for glioblastoma,going through the fundamental knowledge on immune targeting to promising strategies,such as Chimeric antigen receptor T-Cell therapy,immune checkpoint inhibitors,cytokine-based treatment,oncolytic virus and vaccine-based techniques.At last,it is discussed innovative methods to overcome diverse challenges,and future perspectives in this area.