Immunotherapy for cancer
Biological therapy; BiotherapyImmunotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that relies on the body's infection-fighting system (immune system). It uses substances made by the body or in a lab to help the immune system work harder or in a more targeted way to fight cancer. This helps your body get rid of cancer cells.
Immune system
The immune response is how your body recognizes and defends itself against bacteria, viruses, and substances that appear foreign and harmful....
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleCancer
Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancerous cells are also called malignant cells.
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleImmunotherapy works by:
- Stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells
- Preventing cancer from spreading to other parts of the body
- Boosting the immune system's ability to get rid of cancer cells
There are several types of immunotherapy for cancer.
Monoclonal Antibodies
The immune system protects the body from infection. It does this by detecting germs such as bacteria or viruses and making proteins that fight infection. These proteins are called antibodies.
Scientists can make special antibodies in a lab that seek out cancer cells instead of bacteria. Called monoclonal antibodies, they are also a type of targeted therapy.
Targeted therapy
Targeted therapy uses medicines to stop cancer from growing and spreading. It does this with less harm to normal cells than other treatments. Stand...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleSome monoclonal antibodies work by sticking to cancer cells. This makes it easier for other cells made by the immune system to find, attack, and kill the cells.
Other monoclonal antibodies work by blocking signals on the surface of the cancer cell that tell it to divide leading the tumor to grow.
Another type of monoclonal antibody carries radiation or a chemotherapy drug to cancer cells. These cancer-killing substances are attached to the monoclonal antibodies, which then deliver the toxins to the cancer cells.
Radiation
Radiation therapy uses high-powered radiation (such as x-rays or gamma rays), particles, or radioactive seeds to kill cancer cells.
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleChemotherapy
The term chemotherapy is used to describe cancer-killing drugs. Chemotherapy may be used to:Cure the cancerShrink the cancerPrevent the cancer from ...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleMonoclonal antibodies are now used to treat most types of cancer.
Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
"Checkpoints" are specific molecules on certain immune cells that the immune system either turns on or turns off to create an immune response. Cancer cells can use these checkpoints to avoid being attacked by the immune system.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a newer type of monoclonal antibody that act on these checkpoints to boost the immune system so it can attack cancer cells.
PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors are used to treat a variety of different cancer types.
Drugs that target CTLA-4 treat melanoma of the skin, kidney cancer, lung cancer, and other cancer types.
Melanoma of the skin
Melanoma is the most dangerous type of skin cancer. It is also the rarest. It is the leading cause of death from skin disease. Other common types o...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleKidney cancer
Renal cell carcinoma is a type of kidney cancer that starts in the lining of very small tubes (tubules) in the kidney.
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleLung cancer
Lung cancer is cancer that starts in the lungs. The lungs are located in the chest. When you breathe, air goes through your nose, down your windpipe...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleNon-specific Immunotherapies
These therapies boost the immune system in more general way than monoclonal antibodies. There are two main types:
Interleukin-2 (IL-2) helps immune cells grow and divide more quickly. A lab-made version of IL-2 is used for advanced forms of kidney cancer and melanoma.
Interferon alpha (INF-alfa) makes certain immune cells better able to attack cancer cells. It is rarely used to treat:
- Hairy cell leukemia
- Chronic myelogenous leukemia
- Follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma
- Cutaneous (skin) T-cell lymphoma
- Kidney cancer
- Melanoma
- Kaposi sarcoma
Vaccine-Based Immunotherapy
This type of therapy uses viruses that have been altered in a lab to infect and kill cancer cells. When these cells die, they release substances called antigens. These antigens tell the immune system to target and kill other cancer cells in the body.
This type of immunotherapy is currently used to treat melanoma.
Side Effects of Immunotherapy
The side effects for different types of immunotherapy for cancer differ by the type of treatment. Some side effects occur where the injection or IV enters the body, causing the area to be:
- Sore or painful
- Swollen
- Red
- Itchy
Other possible side effects include:
- Flu-like symptoms (fever, chills, weakness, headache)
- Nausea and vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Muscle or joint aches
- Feeling very tired
- Headache
- Low or high blood pressure
- Inflammation of the liver, lungs, endocrine organs, gastrointestinal tract, or skin
These therapies can also cause a severe, sometimes fatal, allergic reaction in people sensitive to certain ingredients in the treatment. However, this is very rare.
References
National Cancer Institute website. CAR T cells: engineering patients' immune cells to treat their cancers. www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/research/car-t-cells. Updated March 10, 2022. Accessed June 13, 2024.
National Cancer Institute website. Immunotherapy to treat cancer. www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/types/immunotherapy. Updated September 24, 2019. Accessed June 13, 2024.
Tseng D, Schultz L, Pardoll D, Mackall C. Cancer immunology. In: Niederhuber JE, Armitage JO, Doroshow JH, Kastan MB, Tepper JE, eds. Abeloff's Clinical Oncology. 6th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 6.
Review Date: 3/31/2024
Reviewed By: Todd Gersten, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, Wellington, FL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.