Cancer immunotherapy using virus particles
A method of treating cancer in a subject that includes administering in situ to the cancer a therapeutically effective amount of a plant virus or virus-like particle to the subject.
1. A method of treating cancer in a subject in need thereof, the method comprising administering directly to the cancer a therapeutically effective amount of an in situ vaccine, the in situ vaccine comprising at least one of cowpea mosaic virus or cowpea mosaic virus-like particles, wherein the cowpea mosaic virus and cowpea mosaic virus-like particles are not used as a vehicle for drug or antigen delivery, and wherein the subject is a non-human animal.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cancer is metastatic cancer.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cancer is selected from the group consisting of melanoma, breast cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, and ovarian cancer.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cancer is lung cancer.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the in situ vaccine is administered by inhalation.
6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of ablating the cancer by treating the subject with a therapeutically effective amount of radiotherapy, chemotherapy, high intensity focused ultrasound or immunotherapy.
7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the treating by chemotherapy comprises the administration of an anticancer agent to the subject in a therapeutically effective amount.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the anticancer agent comprises doxorubicin.
9. The method of claim 6 , wherein the treating by immunotherapy comprises the administration of monoclonal antibodies to the subject in a therapeutically effective amount.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the therapeutically effective amount of the in situ vaccine is an amount effective to stimulate a systemic immune response in the subject.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cancer is dermal melanoma and the in situ vaccine is administered intratumorally.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the in situ vaccine comprises cowpea mosaic virus.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the in situ vaccine comprises cowpea mosaic virus-like particles.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the in situ vaccine comprises empty cowpea mosaic virus-like particles.
15. The method of claim 1 , wherein in situ vaccine comprises cowpea mosaic virus that includes a nucleic acid, and wherein said nucleic acid is RNA.
16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the non-human animal is a canine subject.
17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the non-human animal is a feline subject.