Wasp, scorpion venom could help in fighting cancer, researchers say

When we hear scorpion or wasp, most of us cringe at the thought of getting stung and that painful–sometimes deadly– venom, but some researchers believe that venom can actually save lives by fighting cancer.

In this original report, CBS 2 Chicago’s Mai Martinez talked to one woman who’s living proof.

Donna Van Ryn says the choice facing her in December of 2008 was to “go out fighting or just lay here and die” when she decided to allow doctors to use scorpion venom through an IV to treat her brain cancer as part of a clinical trial. Donna’s doctor, Rimas Lukas of the University of Chicago Medical Center, says the venom acted as a Trojan horse bringing a radioactive isotope directly to the tumor. Read more.