About That Cancer Moonshot

BY KIM BELLARD Joe Biden hates cancer.  He led the Cancer Moonshot in the Obama Administration, and, as President, he reignited it, vowing to cut death rates in half over the next 25 years.  Last month, on the 60th anniversary of President Kennedy’s historic call for an actual moonshot, he vowed “to end cancer as we know it. And even cure cancers once and for all.” But, as several recent studies show, cancer is still surprising us.   ————— Our body has its own defenses against cancer, such as T-cells, and great strides have been made in cancer therapies, including immunotherapies.  Still, though, as first author of a new study from Tel Aviv University, Amit Gutwillig, pointed out: “Despite its remarkable success, the majority of patients who receive immunotherapy will see their tumors only shrinking in size temporarily before returning, and these relapsed tumors will likely be resistant to immunotherapy treatment.”   One reason, it turns out, is that some cancer cells have learned to hide – in other cancer cells. The research found: “While the outer cells in this cell-in-cell formation are often killed by reactive T cells, the inner cells remain intact and disseminate into single tumor cells once T cells are no longer present.”  Sneaky little bastards.  Or, as Professor Yaron Carmi, who heads the lab, told The New York Times, “It was like seeing the devil.” This is groundbreaking stuff. ...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Policy Research Cancer Cancer Progression Fungi John F. Kennedy Moonshot Source Type: blogs