The potential of embyronic treatments to fight cancer | Hashem Al-Ghaili | TEDxCluj

Embryonic cancer treatment. It can treat all types of cancer. It is affordable. Can you imagine that?

Hashem Al-Ghaili is a science communicator who was born in Yemen. He runs his Facebook page, which has over 25 million fans. He graduated from Jacobs University Bremen and obtained his master’s degree in Molecular Biotechnology. According to Tubular labs, his Facebook is among the fastest growing pages in Germany that also generates the highest number of monthly views.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Fifty years ago,

humanity began the war against cancer.

When the war against cancer began,

we were relying on chemotherapy
as the main treatment for cancer.

Now, almost fifty years later,

we are still relying on chemotherapy
as the main treatment for cancer.

What is going on?

Because we have spent
billions of dollars on cancer research,

and yet we don't seem to see
the productive results of this investment.

We are still relying on chemotherapy,
radiotherapy, and surgery

as the main treatments against cancer
despite spending billions of dollars

and despite all the many years
that have passed.

So what is going on with cancer research?

Is it possible that we
don't want to treat cancer?

That would be absurd.

Is it possible that we are approaching
cancer research the wrong way?

Luckily, the number
of cancer survivors is on the rise.

But we still haven't won
the war against cancer.

Scientists are now working on
the second generation of cancer treatment.

The ones that are supposed to replace
chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery.

In fact, two of these treatments
were approved last year.

One is called immunotherapy,

and the second one is called gene therapy.

Now immunotherapy works like this:

You take immune cells
from a cancer patient;

these are called T cells.

You send them to a lab

where they are genetically
engineered to fight cancer.

Then you inject them into the patient.

Three months later,
and the patient is cancer-free.

As exciting as it sounds,
many people and many scientists believe

that immunotherapy is the future
of cancer treatment.

But I don't think so.

There are three problems,

actually four problems
with this treatment.

The first problem is that so far,
it only works against one type of cancer

which is called lymphoblastic leukemia.

And we all know that we have too many
types of cancers to deal with:

breast cancer, brain cancer, skin cancer,

and the list goes on.

The second problem with this treatment

is that it only works on people
who are younger than 25 years old.

And we all know that cancer
can strike at any age.

The third problem,

actually with the two treatments
that were approved last year,

is that they are extremely expensive.

The cost of immunotherapy is $475,000.

And that's not the telephone number
of your health insurance company.

Actually, that's the cost
of only treating one patient

against only one type of cancer.

What is it about cancer treatments
that makes them so expensive?

Why? Why do people
have to sell an organ to treat another?

It is a devastating future
that we are heading to

unless we do something.

So what we really need
is a cancer treatment that is efficient,

that works for the long run,

and that is available when you need it.

Now, the other problem
with these treatments

is that by the time they are
cheap enough for you to afford,

they won't be efficient.

It's going to take many years

before somebody from the middle class
can afford immunotherapy.

And by then, it won't be efficient,

because cancer cells tomorrow
will not respond

to the same treatment
they way they do today.

So we need something
that also works for the long run.

Now, what if I told you
that instead of wasting $475,000

on treating only one patient
against only one type of cancer,

we could, at the same cost,
prevent almost all types of cancer

in 15 individuals.

The human body is equipped
with a natural defense mechanism

which protects us against cancer.

And it's working in your body right now.

It is called DNA repair mechanism.

When DNA makes copies of itself,

there are chances of errors
called mutations.

And these mutations can be accelerated

when you expose yourself
to chemicals, radiation,

when you adopt unhealthy lifestyles,

and sometimes family history
and genetics also play a role.

But there are proteins that are tasked

with repairing these mutations
as soon as they happen.

And this is happening
in your cells right now.

So what if there is a way by which
we could enhance the cell's ability

to repair DNA at a maximum efficiency.

In fact, we could do that.

We know which proteins are involved
in the DNA repair mechanism,

and we know how to control them

with the help of a gene editing
technique called CRISPR,

which you have heard about in the news.

CRISPR is the most precise
gene editing technique

ever invented in human history.

And it is proving to be very efficient.

So we could use this technique
to enhance the cell's ability

to repair its DNA
at all times, at all costs.

But there is one problem.

If we want to protect you
against all types of cancers,

then we have to make sure

that your entire body
is genetically engineered,

that every cell is
programmed to resist cancer.

But we can't do it in adult humans,

because your body
consists of 37 trillion cells,

and that is impossible to engineer.

In fact, there isn't any technology
or gene delivery technique

that can deliver genes
to this massive number of cells.

But what if we could do it
with human embryos instead?

Why?

Because human embryos
only have eight cells

in the third day after fertilization.

And we can manage,

in fact, we can engineer
eight cells in human embryos.

In fact, we are
already doing it right now.

Take a look at these remarkable results.

Scientists genetically
engineer human embryos.

They manage to correct a mutation

responsible for a serious
heart condition in human embryos.

They also manage to treat a condition
responsible for a blood disorder.

What's more amazing, also,

they manage to introduce
HIV resistance to human embryos.

So technically speaking,

if these embryos were allowed
to develop into adult humans,

then the chances of getting
HIV infection in these humans

are so slim they may never happen.

So if we can do it with these diseases
by engineering human embryos,

then we can also do it with cancer.

And it is called embryonic cancer therapy,

which I believe could be
the ultimate cure for cancer.

What's beautiful about
embryonic cancer therapy

is that we only have to engineer
eight cells in human embryos.

These embryos will grow to be adult humans

with 37 trillion
genetically engineered cells.

And we only have to do it once
with one generation.

Because future generations
will already, by default,

get this genetic change as we pass it on.

So they will pass it on
to the next generation.

What's also beautiful about this treatment
is that it's cost efficient.

We are already doing
part of the treatment.

You know about in-vitro fertilization:

you take sperms, eggs,
you fuse them in the lab,

you create embryos,
and you implant them.

This is a procedure
for people who can't conceive.

So, it's very much the same procedure,

except that we are adding
one additional step,

which is genetic engineering.

We are engineering the human embryo
before implantation.

And the cost is really not so much -
I mean, in comparison to $475,000.

The cost of in-vitro fertilization
is not more than $15,000.

In fact, you can get it cheaper
in some countries.

And the cost of genetically
engineering human embryos

is also not more than $10,000.

In fact, you can buy
a CRISPR kit for $1,500,

and you can use it
to engineer at least 100 embryos.

Think of the possibilities here.

Yes, maybe we have to rely on
in-vitro fertilization at the beginning,

but eventually, we will find a way

by which we could engineer the embryos
right on the spot, inside the body.

Now, there are many ways

by which we can enhance
human embryos to fight cancer.

We can tweak molecular processes.

We have a great deal of knowledge

about the molecules
that are involved with cancer,

and we could manipulate them
long before birth.

We could also manipulate human cells.

And instead of immunotherapy after birth,
we could do it before birth.

What's more fascinating is

we could adopt certain traits
from other creatures.

Now, you have heard of the tardigrades,
the toughest animals on earth.

Tardigrades:

they can survive in space radiation,
in the vacuum of space;

they can survive extreme radiation;

they can turn into glass,
under dehydrated conditions.

But what's fascinating
is that they can survive

extreme radiations
which could cause cancer in humans.

What scientists did is
they studied what causes this.

Why are they protected against radiation?

And they found a gene
responsible for that.

They took that gene
and added it to human cells.

Now you have a human cell
but with a gene from another creature.

They took these engineered cells
and exposed them to UV radiation,

and what happened?

The immune cells
were resistant to radiation.

They gained 40% resistance.

So we could acquire this trait.

We could add it to human embryos,

which would definitely
be helpful against cancer.

And there are many other creatures
that have incredible super strength

which we could also add
to the human genome.

Now let's imagine a future

where we have eradicated cancer,
and it no longer exists.

Do you know how much money
we spend on cancer medication?

In 2015, the world spent
107 billion dollars on cancer medication.

By 2020 it is expected to be
150 billion dollars.

And that is just on cancer medication.

There are still billions of dollars
that are spent on cancer research.

We are flooding a lot of money
into cancer research,

and we are ignoring other diseases
that are also as important:

Alzheimer's, multiple sclerosis,
heart failure, spinal cord injuries,

and the list goes on and on.

These diseases also kill people.
They make them terminally ill as well.

And if we just keep flooding
all the resources that we have

into cancer research,

then we are not heading
into the right future.

So, imagine a world

where we don't have to spend that money
on cancer research anymore.

Cancer has been eradicated.

Everybody is born
with a built-in mechanism

that protects them against cancer.

We can now use that money
to study other diseases

and learn about their genetics.

And in a few short years, we will use
what we learned about their genetics

to apply the same technique
and treat them.

So this will be our gate
not only to treating cancer

but also other diseases.

If we have the knowledge
and the technology

to do something as remarkable as this,
then what is stopping us?

Well, there are a number of challenges
that we have to overcome

before we can make this a reality.

The first challenge is bioethics.

As I said, we're working
with embryos here.

And most of the countries, now,

do not allow research on human embryos

beyond 14 days.

So after 14 days,
the human embryos are destroyed.

They are not allowed
for scientific research.

So how are we supposed to understand
the potential of this treatment

if we aren't less strict with the rules?

The problem with bioethics

is that the rules that we established
against scientific research do not change.

Science and technology continue to evolve,

but the rules that we established
50 years ago do not change;

we don't revisit them.

And that is a big problem.

And this is why I believe

that the rule of 14 days
on embryonic therapy

should be revisited,

we should discuss it more,

and we should be less strict

so we can understand the potential
of embryonic treatment.

We will unlock unlimited potential
of such treatment

if we become less strict with the rules.

The second challenge is business interest.

It's quite clear that cancer
is a stable source of income.

It's a problem, and as long as
the problem exists,

some people will continue
to profit from it.

And it is those people who invest
their money in cancer research.

So why would they invest it
into the area of research

that could eradicate cancer
once and for all?

So that is a big problem.
Business interest.

If we eradicated cancer,

we're going to destroy
many business interests

for companies and individuals
who profit from the condition.

But luckily, part of the money
that is spent on cancer research

also comes from
public funding: governments.

Where do they get their money?

From you, the taxpayer.

Part of your money
goes to cancer research.

And we have control over that.

So if we spend that money
on new areas of cancer research,

then we might be onto something,

instead of having the monopoly
of only focusing on the same areas.

As I said, for almost 50 years,
we haven't seen remarkable progress.

The last challenge is public awareness.

Now, the problem with society today
is that we keep our minds shut.

We're not open-minded when it comes
to a new revolution in technology.

We just don't accept it -

even if we haven't learned
a great deal about it,

even if we didn't educate ourselves.

And that is a big problem.

You have seen in online forums,
the rise of ignorance,

comments,

and people who are objecting
scientific knowledge, rise of technology

simply because
they don't understand it,

simply because they don't learn about it,

or maybe we're not doing a good job
of educating them.

So it's very important

for people to keep open minds
towards technology and science.

Learn more about these available options
before saying yes or no.

And it is your responsibility,
since you know about this now,

to bring this discussion
to other people who don't know about it.

More people will know.

We can influence the decision makers
to break the rule of 14 days

so scientists can now study embryos,

we can unlock the potential
of embryonic treatments,

and we can defeat cancer.

The applications of science are endless,

and the possibilities are limitless,

and the choice is only ours now.

Either to keep cancer as a friend
by embracing ignorance and greed,

or defeat our enemy once and for all

by embracing selflessness
and rational thinking.

Thank you.

(Applause)