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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2009
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Tobacco Used in Cancer Vaccine

Scientists who developed HPV vaccine work on a cheaper version—±±

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(Newser) – The same researchers who developed Gardasil—the vaccine that can prevent cervical cancer—have genetically engineered tobacco plants to produce a cheaper version of the vaccine. The new drug, designed for distribution in India and other poor countries, would cost $3 for three doses, as opposed to $360 for Gardasil, reports USA Today.

The genetically engineered tobacco would be grown in special greenhouses and then  "juiced"; the vaccine—which protects against HPV, a sexually transmitted disease—could then be extracted from the liquid. In India, four times as many women get cervical cancer and eight times as many die from it as in the US.

Gardasil, used in the U.S. to prevent strains of an STD that causes most cervical cancer, is the model for a new product for India, extracted from an unlikely natural source.
Gardasil, used in the U.S. to prevent strains of an STD that causes most cervical cancer, is the model for a new product for India, extracted from an unlikely natural source.   (KRT Photos)
Flowers bloom on an American tobacco plant, and with them, possibilities of a low-cost cervical cancer remedy.
Flowers bloom on an American tobacco plant, and with them, possibilities of a low-cost cervical cancer remedy.   (Shutterstock.com)
Farm hand Hendrik Laschewski harvests tobacco plants. If approved by the government, the world's supply of HPV vaccine could be grown year-round in an indoor facility.
Farm hand Hendrik Laschewski harvests tobacco plants. If approved by the government, the world's supply of HPV vaccine could be grown year-round in an indoor facility.   (Getty Images (by Event))
Derived from a plant more infamous for causing cancer, the tobacco-based vaccine would cost an estimated $3 for three doses (AP Photo/Mel Evans, file)
Derived from a plant more infamous for causing cancer, the tobacco-based vaccine would cost an estimated $3 for three doses (AP Photo/Mel Evans, file)   (Associated Press)
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