Viral Oncology

Viral oncology is a branch of oncology that focuses on using viral agents to treat malignancies. Oncovirus infections are widespread, but they rarely lead to malignancy. For the development of cancer, one or more additional insults, such as persistent inflammation, environmental mutagens, or immunosuppression are needed.

Oncovirus types are categorised into:

• Direct Carcinogens
• Indirect Carcinogens

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 are examples of oncogenic RNA viruses.

Viruses are used to infect and kill cancer cells as part of an immunotherapy technique called "oncolytic viruses." Long considered a means of eradicating cancer cells directly, oncolytic viruses. However, a growing amount of evidence points to the possibility that some oncolytic viruses may function, at least in part, by inducing an immunological reaction in the body against the malignancy.

Treatment:
Currently, only one oncolytic virus therapy has been given FDA approval to treat cancer:

T-VEC (Imlygic®) is a modified herpes simplex virus (HSV) that targets tumour cells and encourages their demise. It is authorised for specific groups of melanoma patients.