title: Changing faces in virology: the dutch shift from oncogenic to oncolytic viruses.
abstract: Viruses have two opposing faces. On the one hand, they can cause harm and disease. A virus may manifest directly as a contagious disease with a clinical pathology of varying significance. A viral infection can also have delayed consequences, and in rare cases may cause cellular transformation and cancer. On the other hand, viruses may provide hope: hope for an efficacious treatment of serious disease. Examples of the latter are the use of viruses as a vaccine, as transfer vector for therapeutic genes in a gene therapy setting, or, more directly, as therapeutic anticancer agent in an oncolytic-virus therapy setting. Already there is evidence for antitumor activity of oncolytic viruses. The antitumor efficacy seems linked to their capacity to induce a tumor-directed immune response. Here, we will provide an overview on the development of oncolytic viruses and their clinical evaluation from the Dutch perspective.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Neurosurgery, Brain Tumor Center, Erasmus Medical Center , 3015 GE Rotterdam, The Netherlands .
authors.forename: Zineb
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Belcaid
authors.forename: Martine L M
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Lamfers
authors.forename: Victor W
authors.initials: VW
authors.lastname: van Beusechem
authors.forename: Rob C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Hoeben
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016923:Cell Death / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000266:history / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000235:genetics; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy; D009426:Netherlands; D009857:Oncogenes / Q000235:genetics; D050130:Oncolytic Virotherapy; D050504:Oncolytic Viruses / Q000235:genetics; D057285:Precision Medicine; D014773:Virology / Q000266:history / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D014780:Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology