Researchers from National Institute of Public Health and the Environment Describe Findings in Risk Management (Quantitative Assessment of the Health Risk for Livestock When Animal Viruses Are Applied in Human Oncolytic Therapy: A Case Study for …)

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Weekly News -- Researchers detail new data in Risk Management. According to news originating from Bilthoven, Netherlands, by VerticalNews correspondents, research stated, "Some viruses cause tumor regression and can be used to treat cancer patients; these viruses are called oncolytic viruses. To assess whether oncolytic viruses from animal origin excreted by patients pose a health risk for livestock, a quantitative risk assessment (QRA) was performed to estimate the risk for the Dutch pig industry after environmental release of Seneca Valley virus (SVV)."

Financial support for this research came from Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality.

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, "The QRA assumed SVV excretion in stool by one cancer patient on Day 1 in the Netherlands, discharge of SVV with treated wastewater into the river Meuse, downstream intake of river water for drinking water production, and consumption of this drinking water by pigs. Dose-response curves for SVV infection and clinical disease in pigs were constructed from experimental data. In the worst scenario (four log virus reduction by drinking water treatment and a farm with 10,000 pigs), the infection risk is less than 1% with 95% certainty. The risk of clinical disease is almost seven orders of magnitude lower. Risks may increase proportionally with the numbers of treated patients and days of virus excretion. These data indicate that application of wild-type oncolytic animal viruses may infect susceptible livestock. A QRA regarding the use of oncolytic animal virus is, therefore, highly recommended."

According to the news editors, the research concluded: "For this, data on excretion by patients, and dose-response parameters for infection and clinical disease in livestock, should be studied."

For more information on this research see: Quantitative Assessment of the Health Risk for Livestock When Animal Viruses Are Applied in Human Oncolytic Therapy: A Case Study for Seneca Valley Virus. Risk Analysis, 2018;():. (Wiley-Blackwell - www.wiley.com/; Risk Analysis - onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1539-6924)

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from J. Schijven, Laboratory for Zoonoses and Environmental Microbiology, National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, Netherlands. Additional authors for this research include S. Brizee, P. Teunis, C. de Vos, P. Eble and S. Rutjes.

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