Immunotherapy is an exciting area of cancer
research that is changing the way we think
about cancer treatment.
Immunotherapy works by using the body’s
immune system to fight cancer.
The immune system is a complex network of
organs, tissues, and cells, and the substances
they make.
One of the purposes of the immune system is
to rid the body of germs, such as bacteria,
and abnormal cells, such as cancer cells.
Immunotherapy uses different ways to boost
the immune system to do a better job of killing
cancer cells.
This video describes three types of immunotherapy
that are used to treat cancer : non-specific
immune stimulation, T-cell transfer therapy,
and immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Non-specific immune stimulation is a type
of immunotherapy that stimulates a patient’s
immune response in a general way.
In non-specific immune stimulation, drugs
or other substances are used to increase the
overall immune response, which can help kill
cancer cells.
For example, some patients who have had surgery
to remove bladder cancer may also be treated
with a substance called BCG.
When BCG is put into the bladder, it can cause
a non-specific immune response that kills
cancer cells that remain in the bladder after
surgery.
This may keep the cancer from getting worse
or coming back.
T-cell transfer therapy is another type of
immunotherapy.
T cells are a type of immune cell and are
powerful weapons the immune system uses to
fight cancer.
For T-cell transfer therapy, T cells are taken
from a patient and changed in the laboratory
to make them better able to target the patient’s
cancer cells and kill them.
Millions of copies of these specially changed
T cells are then grown in the laboratory and
given back to the patient to fight the cancer.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a third type
of immunotherapy.
Immune checkpoints on cell surfaces help control
an immune response.
Usually immune checkpoints keep T cells inactive,
that is in an “off” state, until they
are needed.
This keeps the T cells from harming normal
cells.
Cancer cells can take advantage of these checkpoints
to switch T cells off.
This keeps the cancer cells from being killed.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors are drugs that
block the checkpoints.
This frees the T cells to attack the cancer.
These three types of immunotherapy are effective
ways to treat cancer, but they don’t work
for every patient and can cause serious side
effects.
Researchers supported by the National Cancer
Institute are working to learn more about
how the immune system works to fight cancer.
By studying this, researchers can learn how
to improve immunotherapy for all patients.
