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From: bourland@godot.radonc.unc.edu (J. Daniel Bourland)
Newsgroups: sci.research,sci.med
Subject: Re: Coley's toxins
Message-ID: <858@godot.radonc.unc.edu>
Date: Mon, 6-Jul-87 10:11:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: godot.858
Posted: Mon Jul  6 10:11:49 1987
Date-Received: Tue, 7-Jul-87 04:34:09 EDT
References: <367@uop.UUCP>
Reply-To: bourland@godot.UUCP (J. Daniel Bourland)
Organization: Radiation Oncology NCMH/UNC, Chapel Hill, NC
Lines: 16
Keywords: Hyperthermia
Xref: mnetor sci.research:180 sci.med:2566

Coley was this guy who, in the late 1800s or early 1900s, noted that
individuals with tumors, when they got fevers, sometimes spontaneously
went into remission.  He got the idea that one way to fight cancer was
to induce fever.  This induction he did by administering toxins, some
sort of bacteria, which basically got the patient sick so that they
would spike a fever and kill the tumor(s). The toxins he used were
called "Coley's Toxins".  Believe me, you don't want to do this
kind of therapy, and you would not be able to find anyone legitimate
to do it for you.  Coley did help found a form of cancer therapy
called hyperthermia (HYPER not HYPO), which today is starting to
become a modality of cancer therapy when used in combination with
radiation therapy.  Hyperthermia combined with chemotherapy is also
a possibility, and is being investigated.  Today's hyperthermia is
being used to control local disease - the heat is applied locally
and sometimes regionally - the whole body approach (like Coley's)
is difficult to apply and control.