The Unwritten Chapters Gene Therapy of Cancer, 2nd ed.
Authors: Robert E. Sobol
Journal: Molecular Therapy (2002)

Reviewing the text of this book provided an opportunity to reflect upon the development of new technologies and their application to one of mankind's most difficult medical problems—the treatment of cancer. The book literally and figuratively represents the “state-of–the-art,” describing the progress made so far in its written chapters. It is also notable for what remains unwritten: chapters devoted to successful clinical applications. There are many parallels between the development of gene therapy for cancer treatment and that of monoclonal antibodies, which were introduced into clinical trials 20 years ago, roughly a decade before the first gene therapy clinical investigations. Leafing through the text of this book brought to mind similar compilations of basic reviews, preclinical studies, and early clinical results that were helpful and common in the translational laboratories that developed monoclonal antibodies and eventually brought them into clinical practice. The second edition is reasonably thorough and is divided into six sections. The first section covers the vector systems used for gene transfer. Subsequent sections describe applications for immunotherapy/vaccines, tumor suppressors, drug resistance, anti-angiogenesis/pro-apoptosis, and prodrug activation strategies. In general, the authors are recognized leaders in their respective fields. The section on vectors includes reviews of retroviral, lentiviral, and adeno-associated viral systems as well as chapters on nonviral vectors and ribozymes. This section would benefit from additional material, particularly on adenoviral and herpes vector systems that are an important part of cancer gene therapy efforts. While there is a chapter on antibody-targeted gene therapy, several additional approaches for engineered targeting of vectors are under development and will be important for the treatment of metastatic disease, and would have been useful additions. The heart of the book is found in the sections dealing with cancer gene therapy applications. Typically, there is an introductory chapter providing a general overview of the field followed by chapters describing more specific and detailed approaches. In some instances, preliminary clinical results are provided. Each of these sections is strong and the chapters on immune-targeted and drug-resistance gene therapies are particularly excellent, reflecting the expertise of the editors. The section on tumor suppressors is largely devoted to preclinical studies and would benefit from a summary of the significant clinical experience that has been obtained in this area. The reviews of prodrug applications, anti-angiogenesis, and replicating adenoviral vectors are very good. Overall, this book is a worthy addition to the laboratories and libraries serving the students, fellows, and experienced researchers devoted to translating cancer gene therapy applications from the laboratory to the bedside. As with monoclonal antibodies at a similar stage of their development, book chapters devoted to successful clinical applications of cancer gene therapy are short indeed and the current edition remains largely focused on preclinical studies. Technical advances such as the “humanization” of monoclonal antibodies eventually lead to their successful clinical development. Similarly, additional technical improvements in vector targeting and efficiency will enable the inclusion in future editions of this book—the chapters to be written—on clinically successful cancer gene therapies.