Genetic Approaches Begin to Revolutionize PCa therapies.

At this time, genetic approaches to fight PCa breaks down to two techniques, the DNA approach, and the mRNA approach.

The DNA approach uses CRISPR technology

Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRIPSR) technology leads the way in the DNA approach to fighting PCa.

Cancer results from unfavorable DNA alterations that creates cancer cells from regular cells that then grow uncontrollably, undetected by our immune system. Surgery typically removes the prostate, cancer cells and healthy cells alike, in the hope all cancer cells have been removed. Radiation kills cancer cells and healthy cells alike, also in the hope all cancer cells are killed.

On the other hand, genetic DNA approaches to fighting PCa uses a ‘fire fights fire’ technique, where 1) PCa cells are targeted, and their DNA is altered so cells kill themselves, or 2) our immune system cells are enhanced genetically so they can detect cancer cells, which were previously undetected, and destroy them.

CRISPR-Cas9 technology is considered a major breakthrough in fighting prostate cancer (PCa) by providing a precise, efficient tool to edit the genetic drivers of advanced, treatment-resistant disease. It allows researchers to target specific genes involved in cancer growth and metastasis, particularly in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), which is often refractory to standard therapies.

Understand how CRISPR Works and what CRISPR can do

Two reasonably short videos give perspective on how revolutionarily different CRISPR gets the results it does as well as why what it does has been completely unobtainable without it. It all began in 2012, and quickly began making things happen that only a short time previous to that was considered science fiction.

First is a general CRISPR video from the Kurzgesagt series. Kurzgesagt in German means “in a nutshell.”

Here is a youtube link to the Kurzgesagt CRISPR video. Curing cancers gets a cursory examination around 6:30 if you want to just see that, but I encourage you to watch the entire video.

The second video is from Acapella Science that mentions a lot of things, from CRISPR mechanisms (how it works) to some of its major accomplishments and how rapidly they have been occurring. It’s set to the tune of “Mr. Sandman”, which for me, makes it also entertaining. Here is the Acapella Science CRISPR video. And here is a link to the lyrics, in case you wish to dig into more of what is being said without having to constantly stop and start the video.

Key ways CRISPR is revolutionizing prostate cancer treatment include: 

• Overcoming Drug Resistance: CRISPR/Cas9 can be used to identify novel targets that, when knocked out, make cancer cells sensitive to existing treatments, such as PARP inhibitors and anti-androgen therapies like enzalutamide.
• Targeting Androgen Receptor (AR) Signaling: Researchers have successfully used CRISPR to eliminate the androgen receptor gene in androgen-positive prostate cancer cells, which leads to the inhibition of cancer development and triggers cellular apoptosis (programmed cell death).
• Identifying Metastasis Drivers: Genome-wide CRISPR screenings have identified specific genes, such as CITED2 and KMT2C, as key drivers of bone and lung metastasis, providing new targets for therapy.
• Engineering Immunotherapy (CAR-T): CRISPR can be used to genetically modify T cells to better recognize and kill prostate cancer cells. This includes knocking out genes that restrict the cancer-killing ability of T cells and targeting immune checkpoints like PD-1.
• Precise In Vivo Editing: Advanced delivery systems, such as non-viral graphene quantum dots, are being developed to deliver CRISPR components specifically to prostate cancer cells to edit genes like TP53 and IL-30, significantly reducing tumor volume and metastasis in preclinical models.
• Rapid Modeling: CRISPR enables the simultaneous mutation of multiple tumor suppressor genes (e.g., TP53, PTEN, Rb1, Stk11, RnaseL), allowing for the creation of faster, more accurate mouse models to study aggressive prostate cancer.

While these advances are promising, most CRISPR applications for prostate cancer are currently in the pre-clinical or early trial stages, with challenges regarding in vivo delivery and off-target effects still being addressed.

How I am taking advantage of this information

The next step for me involves learning about the pre-clinical and early trial stages in anticipating entering a trial, or waiting things out and use the result of these types of therapies as an alternative to surgery or radiation. In the mean time, I use the epigenetic method that creates mild forms of these types of revolutionary results by drastically altering my diet and taking quite a few supplements. My process has lowered my PSA in half, from 6 to 3, and has reduced my MRI results from PIRADS 4 to PIRADS 3. OK it’s not perfection, but I am moving in the right direction, buying time for the full blown genetic approaches such as CRISPR and mRNA vaccine techniques.

Here is the explanation of how I am doing it.

Here are the nuts and bolts of exactly how I load my body up with research-based PCa fighting supplements and foods.

The list of supplements I buy can be found here.

Best of Science to Everyone !