Uncovering Merkel Cell Polyomavirus
"Using the immune response to the oncogenic Merkel cell polyomavirus to improve diagnosis and therapy for an often-deadly skin cancer".
Merkel cell carcinoma is a rare form of skin cancer that tends to occur in older people on parts of the body exposed to the sun and ultraviolet light. While rarer than the better known form of skin cancer, melanoma, Merkel cell carcinoma is actually even more medically serious, with up to 45% of persons diagnosed with this form of cancer dying as a result of the disorder. In 2008, it was discovered that a previously unknown virus, termed Merkel cell polyoma virus, is involved in causing about 80% of cases of Merkel cell carcinoma. Today's lecture reviews what is known about this cancer-causing virus and how this new information is leading to novel diagnostic tools and candidate therapies that are being applied on a research basis at UW, Fred Hutchinson, and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.
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