Research - Immunotherapy

      These treatments are still at a relatively early stage of their development. Early trials are taking place with patients who have advanced cancers and for whom all other treatments have been tried. Targeted immunotherapy has shown some promise in treating these patients. But they may work even better if they are used to try to prevent a cancer recurrence for patients with earlier stage cancer. These trials are now being planned for some treatments. Some BRMs, such as cytokines and antibodies, occur naturally in the body, however, it is now possible to make BRMs in the laboratory that can imitate or influence natural immune response agents.These BRMs may:

Enhance the immune system to fight cancer cell growth.
Eliminate, regulate, or suppress body responses that permit cancer growth.
Make cancer cells more susceptible to destruction by the immune system.
Alter cancer cell's growth patterns to behave like normal cells.
Block or reverse the process that changes a normal cell into a cancer cell.
Prevent a cancer cell from spreading to other sites.

Many BRMs are currently being used in cancer treatment, including interferons, interleukins, tumor necrosis factor, colony-stimulating factors, monoclonal antibodies, and cancer vaccines.