Replicating viruses for gynecologic cancer therapy.

Despite advanced therapeutic treatments, gynecologic malignancies such as cervical and ovarian cancers are still the top ten leading cause of cancer death among women in South Korea. Thus a novel and innovative approach is urgently needed. Naturally occurring viruses are live, replication-proficient viruses that specifically infect human cancer cells while sparing normal cell counterparts. Since the serendipitous discovery of the naturally oncotropic virus targeting gynecologic cancer in 1920s, various replicating viruses have shown various degrees of safety and efficacy in preclinical or clinical applications for gynecologic cancer therapy. Cellular oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, which are frequently dysregulated in gynecologic malignancies, play an important role in determining viral oncotropism. Published articles describing replicating, oncolytic viruses for gynecologic cancers are thoroughly reviewed. This review outlines the discovery of replication-proficient virus strains for targeting gynecologic malignancies, recent progresses elucidating molecular connections between oncogene/tumor suppressor gene abnormalities and viral oncotropism, and the associated preclinical/clinical implications. The authors would also like to propose future directions in the utility of the replicating viruses for gynecologic cancer therapy.