An Approach to Deliver Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells to Solid Tumors

The approaches to cancer therapies that we should pay attention to are those capable of targeting many different types of cancer. The only practical way to meaningfully accelerate progress towards robust control of cancer as a whole is for the research community to prioritize treatments that have a much broader impact for a given investment in development. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) methods, in which T cells are engineered to direct their attention towards markers that identify cancer cells, can plausibly be adapted to many different cancers with minimal cost. Given that, they are a step in the right direction towards making cancer research cost-effective. So far CAR T cells have proven effective against various leukemias, but adapting this form of immunotherapy to the much larger range of cancers that form solid tumors has been a challenge. Here, researchers outline one possible way forward: Cellular immunotherapy is beginning to bring new hope to patients with certain blood cancers. Tumors that form solid masses, such as breast and pancreatic cancer, are the next frontier for the strategy - but scientists are still grappling with how to overcome the unique challenges large clusters of tumor cells present to engineered immune cells. Researchers have now shown that a dissolving biopolymer sponge packed with therapeutic ingredients can shrink tumors and extend survival in laboratory models of cancer. Loaded with engineered immune cells, molecules that help stimul...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs