Holy Grail: Hope For Cancer Victims As Scientists Find Cure

In what’s being described as a profound breakthrough that will alter human lives, scientists have discovered a pill, ‘holy grail’, that can successfully eradicate all solid cancer tumours and leave other cells unaffected.

Scientists at the City of Hope Hospital in Los Angeles, US, the founders, explained that the pill known as AOH1996 targets a protein found in cancers which helps tumours grow and multiply.

Before the latest discovery, the protein called the proliferating cell nuclear antigen, PCNA, was believed to be untreatable.

Nigeria has 233,911 cancer cases with 124,815 new cases and 78,899 deaths annually according to the Executive Secretary of GivingTide International, Dr Abia Nzelu, who’s also a fellow West African College of Surgeon.

He raised the alarm that an estimated 28.4 million new global cancer cases would occur in 2040, a 47% rise from 2020.

The World Cancer Research Fund said in its 2020 reports that there’s an estimated 18.1 million cancer cases across the world, with 9.3 million men and 8.8 million women respectively.

The World Health Organisation 2022 report said cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide with nearly one in six deaths, that’s nearly 10 million annual deaths.

These alarming reports have now been dwarfed by the latest discovery by scientists at the City of Hope Hospital in Los Angeles, one of the largest cancer centres in the US, which tested the pill on 70 different cancer cells.

The test included cancer cells derived from breast, prostate, brain, ovarian and cervical.

Incredibly, the holy grail worked against them all, setting in jubilation and hope of redemption against one of the virulent and debilitating diseases afflicting human beings.

The scientists said it’s a result of 20 years of intense research and development to find a cure to what many have described as “untreatable.”

Professor Linda Malkas, who has been instrumental to the development of the pill explained that, “PCNA is like a major airline terminal hub containing multiple plane gates.

“Data suggests PCNA is uniquely altered in cancer cells, and this fact allowed us to design a drug that targeted only the form of PCNA in cancer cells.

“Our cancer-killing pill is like a snowstorm that closes a key airline hub, shutting down all flights in and out only in planes carrying cancer cells.”

The scientists said AOH1996 can suppress tumour growth in cell and animal models with the first phase of a clinical trial in humans being undertaken.

Professor Long Gu, who’s the study co-author associate research pointed out that, “Now that we know the problem area and can inhibit it, we will dig deeper to understand the process to develop more personalised, targeted cancer medicines.”

It’s hoped that when the roll out begins in a few years, Nigerians like their counterparts across the world would finally find redemption in what’s one of the few most feared diseases afflicting them.