Targeted Radiotherapy for Prostate Cancer with an Oncolytic Adenovirus Coding for Human Sodium Iodide Symporter

Purpose: Oncolytic adenoviruses are promising tools for cancer therapy. Although several clinical reports have indicated both safety and promising antitumor capabilities for these viruses, there are only a few examples of complete tumor eradication. Thus, the antitumor efficacy of oncolytic adenoviruses needs to be improved. One potentially useful approach is combination with radiotherapy. Experimental Design: To target systemically administered radioiodide to tumors, we created Ad5/3-Delta 24-human sodium iodide symporter (hNIS), a Rb-p16 pathway selective infectivity enhanced oncolytic adenovirus encoding hNIS. Results: Ad5/3-Delta 24-hNIS replication effectively killed prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. Also, the virus-mediated radioiodide uptake into prostate cancer cells in vitro and into tumors in vivo. Furthermore, Ad5/3-Delta 24-hNIS with radioiodide was significantly more effective than virus alone in mice with prostate cancer xenografts. Conclusions: These results suggest that oncolytic adenovirus-mediated targeted radiotherapy might be a potentially useful option for enhancing the efficacy or adenoviral virotherapy. (Clin Cancer Res 2009;15(17):5396-403)