Stem cells as effective carriers for viral therapy in prostate cancer

Introduction: The prostate cancer is the most common disease among men in Western industrialized countries. One effective remedy for malignant tumors of prostate is using of viruses. This treatment involves the use of genetically engineered viruses or natural viruses directed toward cancer cells to cause targeted destruction of tumor cells. The most important advantage of using these viruses is their ability to distinguish between natural and cancerous tissues. However, there are important challenges in targeting tumors with viruses, foremost of which is the disposal of the host body's immune system during the first week of therapy. Moreover, the barriers inside the tumor, such as hypoxia, different portions of the connective tissue, and the growth of tumors develop complications that reduce the therapeutic ability of these viruses.Description: New studies show that the use of stem cells as carrier for the virus therapy makes them to protect against the host's immune system as well as prevent them from recruiting them by non-specific tissues. The stem cells with a diversity in their structure show the greatest effect compared to other carrier systems to use in viral therapy. Most positive therapeutic results have been reported using mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cells and stem cells derived from fat. Due to the inherent tendency of stem cells to become tumor cells, consideration should be given to toxicity-induced viral therapy in these cells. Besides, the viral therapeutic dose and induction system should be carefully monitored to be effective in remote tumor sites.Discussion and conclusion: The use of autologe stem cells produced by the patient has more effective therapeutic results than the allogeneic stem cells that may be passed after implantation. With recent advances, it is hoped that in the near future, scientists will be able to treat metastatic patients at the clinical level.