Immunotherapy Promises New Approach to Fighting Cancers

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Merck & Co. and Roche Holding AG, among others, are developing immunotherapy drugs to fight cancer. The drugs are based on a strategy to stimulate and/or suppress the immune system in order to help the body fight cancer, infection, and other diseases, often with relatively few side effects. Some types of immunotherapies only target certain cells of the immune system. Others affect the immune system in a general way. Types of immunotherapy include cytokines, vaccines and certain monoclonal antibodies. A more recent class of these drugs is called checkpoint inhibitors which block normal proteins on cancer cells. Advancements in genetic sequencing and analysis are aiding significant advances in immunotherapy.

A key strategy in fighting cancer is to use immunotherapy techniques to encourage the body's own immune system to aggressively locate and attack cancer cells. Specifically, T-cells, a type of white blood cell, often are unable to fight malignant cells because of proteins in the cancer that bind to T-cell receptors (called PD-1 receptors), effectively blocking the T-cells’ ability to do their jobs. Immunotherapy drugs block the binding of the proteins to the PD-1 receptors, allowing the T-cells to find and attack the cancerous cells. Oncologists report that the successful response rate to immunotherapy is about 20% across cancer types.

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