Using Herpes Virus to Attack Melanoma

This year, 70,000 people will be diagnosed with melanoma in the United States. Almost 9,000 will die from it. There hasn't been a treatment for melanoma in a decade, but now, doctors are using an STD to kill it.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego are testing a type of immunotherapy for melanoma using engineered herpes viruses. Using a needle similar to that used for the flu vaccine, researchers inject the herpes virus into a melanoma lesion. The idea is the presence of the new virus alerts the body's immune system to attack the cancerous area. Daniels said the virus is engineered to be safe for non-cancerous cells, and the idea of using viruses to fight cancer has been around for hundreds of years.