An incredible breakthrough

Cocktail of germs may cure childhood leukemia

To those parents waging war on dirt and germs: Set down the dustpan. Stow away the antibacterial wipes. And, that dirt under the little one’s nails that you were hurrying to scrub away? No rush.

And while you absorb that information, take this in: The ear infections and runny noses that you were trying to avoid like the, umm, plague? No need.

If a medical scientist across The Pond is right:

Dirt is good.

Infant illness is instructive. And the cure for childhood leukemia could be a cocktail of germs mixed up in drinkable yogurt.

Many years of inquiry by Mel Greaves of London’s Institute of Cancer Research has led him to these (simplified for common consumption) conclusions.

And for his work, he learned in December that he would receive knighthood this year.

It is an honor richly deserved. The professor has been on the trail of the sometimes-deadly childhood blood disorder for three decades.

While 90 percent of the cases are cured, current treatment protocols can be toxic. Mr. Greaves believes he is on the way to developing a less caustic — indeed, a potentially tasty — alternative.

But, first, how he got from there to here: 1.) A rising incident rate in his home country has been documented and the conclusion made that childhood leukemia is more of a problem in general within affluent societies. 2.) The disease begins in the womb with a genetic mutation which, later in the child’s life, is triggered by another biological event that sends the child’s immune system into overdrive, ultimately triggering another mutation — fullblown leukemia.

While Mr. Greaves doesn’t know how to avoid to the underlying genetic mutation, he believes the trigger for its manifestation can be avoided if a child’s immune system is forced to battle infection in the first year of life. Essentially, that battle would “prime” the baby’s immune system to work properly later. Hence, the concern that parents who “protect” their children from dirt, germs and infection actually may be undermining them.

He told The Guardian newspaper, “When such a baby (that has been insulated from germs and infection) is eventually exposed to common infections, his or her unprimed immune system reacts in a grossly abnormal way. It overreacts and triggers chronic inflammation.” And that inflammation causes the release of chemicals that triggers the second mutation that manifests as leukemia.

He discerned how to block the chronic inflammation trigger, looking closely at the human gut, with all its bacteria, viruses and other microbes. He has found that people who live “cleaner” lives have fewer microbes. He’s working now with mice to find out which “bugs” are best at stimulating rodent immune systems with an eye toward human experimentation in a couple of years. In essence, he’s looking for a way to prime a child’s immune system and he believes the answer is a just-right cocktail of microbes, mixed into a yogurt drink.

If it works out the way the professor expects, the microbe-laced yogurt could combat childhood leukemia as well as other conditions like diabetes and allergies.

There is a distance to travel. Mr. Greaves must complete his rodent experiments then duplicate them in humans. Then other scientists will have to replicate the results. In the meantime, his work offers hope for a major medical advancement — and perhaps some justification for a lessthan-sanitized home and some tolerance for sick kids at the next Baby & Me get-together.