Could the pill be a secret weapon against cancer?

Two new studies highlight the potential of fecal microbiota transplantation as a benefit for cancer immunotherapy.

The future of cancer treatment may just involve a dose of fecal donation.A pair of small studies conducted this week found that fecal microbe transplantation (FMT) — thankfully delivered via a pill — could potentially give other cancer treatments a much-needed boost.

Scientists in Canada conducted two experiments published Wednesday in Nature Medicine.In one trial in patients with advanced kidney cancer, FMT was shown to reduce the side effects of immunotherapy.On the other hand, immunotherapy has actually improved outcomes for patients with lung cancer or melanoma.The researchers said the findings suggest that FMT could be a promising addition to an already valuable approach to treating terminal cancer.Scientists from Italy, the United States and France participated.

Poop in the form of pills

The gut microbiome—the community of bacteria that lives along our digestive tract—plays an important role in our health.And many conditions are linked to a dysfunctional microbiome.FMT reconstructs one person's microbiome using another person's gut bacteria as a template.

FMT is well taken care of c.Diffurnitor disease.Crime is difficult for the required races in the colon.

In a Phase I trial led by researchers at Lawson and the London Health Sciences Center Research Institute (LHSCRI), FMT was given to 20 patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.The patients had all used chemotherapy, treatments that strengthen the body's natural defenses against cancer, before their FMT.

Compared to standard treatment, participants experienced fewer rashes, reported fewer immunotherapy-related side effects such as nausea and diarrhea. About 50 percent of people also showed a response.Although the study was not primarily designed to evaluate efficacy, it was higher than usual for these drugs.

Researchers from the University Hospital Center in Montreal conducted a second study, phase II.People with advanced lung cancer or melanoma who received both FMT and immunotherapy had a response rate of 75% to 80% — well above the typical 39% to 45% rate seen with these treatments, the researchers said.

Early but promising

These studies are still small in size, so their findings should be viewed with some caution.But they certainly warrant larger, more comprehensive trials to further test FMT as a gift for cancer treatment, and some trials are already underway.

"The use of FMT to reduce drug toxicity and improve patients' quality of life while improving their clinical response to cancer therapy is huge and has never been done before in kidney cancer," said Michael Silverman, author of both studies and director of the infectious disease program at St Joseph's Healthcare in London, Ontario, in a statement.

Even in pill form, donated stool can be a difficult treatment for some people's intestines.But one day it could go a long way in saving the lives of people who wouldn't respond to conventional treatment.