One of Britain's most inspirational business leaders, Sir Michael Lockett, who was a key figure in both the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee river pageant, has revealed that he has a revolutionary cold sore treatment to thank for the curing of his neck and head cancers.
Although the cold sore treatment was only at its trial stages when Lockett was first placed on it in 2009, his doctors have now given him the news he has been longing to hear: his cancer appears to be cured.
The cold sore-based cancer treatment is truly a medical marvel. It takes the form of a drug, Imlygic, which is comprised of a genetically modified version of the herpes virus to stimulate the immune system into targeting tumours that were previously thought to be inoperable. Lockett's cancer was resistant to both radiotherapy and chemotherapy, a situation which led him to contact scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research in the hope of being included in the early cold sore treatment trial.
It is a sad addendum then that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has so far failed to give approval to the drug for the treatment of some aggressive cancers – a situation many campaigners have branded "unacceptable".
The treatment is incredibly sophisticated. The modified herpes virus avoids healthy cells and instead targets cancer cells where it then multiplies, causing them to rupture and provoking a natural immune response.
"The herpes virus appears to be a very powerful killer of cancer," commented Professor Kevin Harrington from the Royal Marsden Hospital
