LSU works on animal cancer treatment

• By JAMES REES
• Special to The Advocate
• Published: Mar 13, 2009 - Page: 1E - UPDATED: 12:35 a.m.

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Curing cancer is not usually in the job description for most practicing veterinarians, but for Dr. Shulin Li, seeking a cure for the deadly disease is all in a day’s work.

Li, an associate professor in the Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences at the LSU School of Veterinarian Medicine, is developing a new system of cancer treatment for animals. The technique, called electroporation-assisted chemo-gene therapy, uses a brief noninvasive electrical stimulation procedure to combat malignant tumor growths.

The process involves injecting a combination of chemotherapy drugs and plasmid DNA into the tumor while it undergoes stimulation with a series of external electrical pulses.

The pulses temporarily cause the tumor cells to become more permeable, which allows the drugs easier access to attack the unwanted cancer cells, Li said. The entire procedure takes less than 10 minutes.

“With this treatment,” Li said, “not only does the anti-cancer drug affect only tumor cells, but the body’s immune system gains access to the malignancy as well.”

Li, with the LSU Vet School since 2003, has been experimenting with electroporation-assisted chemo-gene therapy on mice for several years. Recently, he broadened his patient list to include dogs with oral tumors.

Three of the six dogs he treated were cured of their cancer with no evidence of tumor regrowth. Li attributes the lack of tumor regeneration to a special process involved in electroporation that greatly discourages cancer reformation.

“Once given access (to the tumor) by the electrical pulses,” he said, “the body’s immune system induces anti-tumor immune response and anti-tumor immune memory. Induction of anti-tumor immune memory is the key to preventing tumor recurrence.”

Although the results of early experimentation seem promising, Li acknowledges that a larger sample size is needed to properly determine if this method is a viable cancer cure. Li, who administers the treatment free of charge to pet owners, sees only special cases involving oral cancer.

There should be no shortage of available candidates, though. The LSU Vet School admits animals with cancer on a frequent basis, said Ginger Guttner, public relations coordinator.

“We usually see about 300 to 400 cats and dogs with cancer each year,” she said. “Traditionally, we treat them with radiation and chemotherapy, just like what humans go through. Li’s research might eventually lead to a change in the way we treat cancer.”

Gary Wise, head of the Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, is equally impressed with Li’s breakthroughs. “Dr. Li’s research is the gold standard for translational research. He has utilized principles grounded in his basic science research to devise a cancer treatment method that is novel and effective.”

Though Li’s research findings are limited by the small number of cases he’s treated, he predicts that there is a promising future for the treatment of animal cancer using the electroporation technique.