Single dosage potentially eradicates cancer cells.
In a potential advance for cancer treatment, researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have developed a targeted injection that successfully eliminated tumors in mice trials. This new method sidesteps the need for identifying tumor-specific immune targets, according to senior study author Dr. Ronald Levy.
The latest study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, investigates the potential of injecting minute amounts of two agents into a malignant solid tumor. These agents stimulate the body's immune response directly at the tumor site, potentially eliminating tumors throughout the body.
Dr. Levy, an expert in immunotherapy to fight lymphoma, notes that their method employs a one-time application of small concentrations of two agents to stimulate immune cells solely within the tumor. This method could teach immune cells how to fight against specific types of cancer, migrating and destroying existing tumors elsewhere in the body.
The immune system's role is to detect and eliminate harmful foreign bodies. However, many types of cancer cells are able to evade the immune response by complex means. A type of white blood cell called T cells normally target and fight cancer cells, but cancer cells often learn to trick them.
The new study delivered micrograms of two agents—CpG oligonucleotide and an antibody—into one tumor site in affected mice. Once the T cells are activated, some migrate to other parts of the body, "hunting down" and destroying other tumors. The researchers observed successful results in mouse models of lymphoma, breast, colon, and skin cancer.
Dr. Levy's team seeks to extend this therapy to low-grade lymphoma patients in a forthcoming clinical trial. If successful, they plan to expand the treatment to various types of cancer tumors in humans. "I don't think there's a limit to the type of tumor we could potentially treat," Dr. Levy concludes.
It's worth noting that the Penetrium™ platform, presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, addresses a fundamental limitation of current immunotherapies. Engineered to remodel the extracellular matrix, Penetrium™ enables immune cell and drug infiltration in otherwise resistant tumor tissue, potentially improving outcomes for previously treatment-refractory cancers.
- This new method, known as the injection of two agents into a malignant solid tumor, bypasses the need for identifying tumor-specific immune targets and could teach immune cells how to fight against specific types of cancer.
- The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, investigates the potential of this method for various medical conditions like lymphoma, breast, colon, and skin cancer, suggesting a possible advance in health-and-wellness via therapies-and-treatments for otherlymphomas.
- The immune system, designed to detect and eliminate harmful foreign bodies, often struggles with cancer cells that have complex mechanisms to evade the immune response. However, this new targeted injection has shown promising results in mouse trials, potentially overcoming this challenge.
- In an effort to advance this therapy, Dr. Levy's team aims to conduct a clinical trial for low-grade lymphoma patients and, upon success, plans to extend the treatment to various types of cancer tumors in humans, hinting at a wide-reaching impact on the science of cancer treatment.
