Although the cure for cancer appears to be impossible, prevention still exists. Instead of a
‘cure’ what most doctors aim for, and most cancer patients hope to hear is the word
remission. Remission is the absence or decrease in cancer cells over the course of one
month. Despite remission being a major achievement, the recurrence of cancer remains a
threat.
The three pillars of treatment options have been surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation
therapy since the 1900s. In recent years a fourth pillar has been discovered,
immunotherapy. Immunotherapy takes advantage of a human’s own immune system to kill
cancerous cells in the body, thus is arguably a better option, as, unlike chemotherapy, it
usually does not lead to the death of both cancerous and ‘normal’ cells. The synergy of the two pillars may also prove to be more effective in treating cancer. The different types of
immunotherapies include T-cell therapies and the most common, naked monoclonal
antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies attach to the antigens on cancer cells, triggering an
immune response while also blocking cell growth. T-cells or T- lymphocytes, present in all
humans, develop from stem cells in the bone marrow and are essential in destroying cancer
cells and preventing them from spreading. In a laboratory, a specific protein, chimeric
antigen receptor (CAR), is added to these cells after extraction from the blood. This enables
the T-cells to recognize cancer cells when put back in the body. This is especially effective in
the treatment of blood cancers, like acute lymphoblastic leukemia and multiple myeloma
in younger patients.
Even with its effectiveness, T-cell therapy has harmful side effects such
as high fever, severe nausea as well as neurological problems of delirium and seizures.
Ongoing research in CAR T-cell therapy intends on finding ways to prevent such side effects,
to make treatment options much safer. Thus, although the future is uncertain, scientists and
the cancer community continue to be optimistic about cancer research and discoveries like
targeted therapy, that in the coming years could radically alter the oncology paradigm.