From: James Saccardo <James.Saccardo**At_Symbol_Here**CSI.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Working safely with cancer cells
Date: Thu, 19 May 2016 04:09:26 +0000
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: 0D895D9F-F7CC-4284-B2B3-1BFA5B968980**At_Symbol_Here**csi.cuny.edu
In-Reply-To <852F486739ECB34484E384E1D009D97DC7310BEE**At_Symbol_Here**UBOX2.unr.edu>


This is exactly what the PI on the project said,  if he ate them,  they would be foreign and destroyed ( by phages? ) ... I didn't call his bluff.  He further explained that the virus that infected the cell (1950's hpv) was no longer present and the cell could not produce it. In this case we are talking about HeLa cells which I am told express proteins from the virus. 
I am going to track down that article tomorrow at work, thanks for contributing a documented case.
Be well, 
James

James Saccardo, MPH, CHMM



On May 17, 2016, at 4:47 PM, Benjamin G Owens <bowens**At_Symbol_Here**UNR.EDU> wrote:

James,

 

All human primary and cultured cells should be handled using BSL-2 practices and procedures.  If human cancer cells are transferred to another human the host immune system will normally see the cancer cells as foreign and destroy them.  I have read of one case where a laboratory worker was accidently inoculated with human colonic adenocarcinoma cells, which produced a local tumor nodule (Gugel, EA and Sanders, ME, Needle-stick transmission of human colonic adenocarcinoma, NEJM 1986; 315:1487). 

 

Ben Owens

 

--------------------------------

Ben Owens

Assistant Director, Laboratory Safety

Environmental Health and Safety Dept., MS 328

University of Nevada, Reno 89557

Office Phone: 775-327-5196

Cell Phone: 775-843-2113

Fax: 775-784-4553

 

 

 

From: DCHAS-L Discussion List [mailto:dchas-l**At_Symbol_Here**med.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of James Saccardo
Sent: Tuesday, May 17, 2016 12:41 PM
To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Working safely with cancer cells

 

Good Afternoon, Here is a question for the list serve -

More and more laboratories are using cancer cells. The body of evidence states that you can not get cancer from touching or even eating a HeLa cell or some other cancerous cell from another species, but I am not sure that I can just swallow that without any reasoning. Anyone have an opinion or reasoning regarding contracting cancer from a cancer cell culture?

 

A cancerous cell has been changed by some virus that is no longer present and the cancer cell is not able to re assemble the virus or affect the genome of another cell.

Does anyone have any references for working with cancer cells? Does working with these cells require anything more than BLS-1 or BSL-2? Must these be deactivated before discarding?

If anyone has any thoughts or resources regarding working with HeLa or other human and animal cancer cell lines above and beyond what you would do with normal healthy cells, I am listening. Some staff seems to be trivializing this and I am not sure that I agree, I am looking for some reinforcement (on their opinion or mine) and any references or resources in regards to working with cancer cell lines in the lab.

Thanks,

James Saccardo, MS, CHMM

The College of Staten Island

Office of Environmental Health and Safety

(718)-982-3906

james.saccardo**At_Symbol_Here**csi.cuny.edu

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

                                             Benjamin Franklin

Confidentiality Note:  The information contained in this Email and/or document(s) attached is for the exclusive use of the individual named above and may contain confidential, privileged and non-disclosable information. This communication may also contain data subject to U.S. export laws, not releasable to Foreign Persons unless authorized by 22 CFR 120-130 or 15.CFR 730-774. If so, that data subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulation cannot be disseminated, distributed or copied to foreign nationals, residing in the U.S. or abroad, absent the express prior approval of the U.S. Department of State. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that you are strictly prohibited from reading, photocopying, distributing or otherwise using this Email or its contents in any way. If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender by reply e-mail and destroy the e-mail message and any physical copies made of the communication.

 

 

 

  ________________________________  

Take a picture. Write a caption. Win a prize. Where's Danny the Dolphin today?

Previous post   |  Top of Page   |   Next post



The content of this page reflects the personal opinion(s) of the author(s) only, not the American Chemical Society, ILPI, Safety Emporium, or any other party. Use of any information on this page is at the reader's own risk. Unauthorized reproduction of these materials is prohibited. Send questions/comments about the archive to secretary@dchas.org.
The maintenance and hosting of the DCHAS-L archive is provided through the generous support of Safety Emporium.