Hope for a universal cancer treatment

In a potential breakthrough for cancer research, British scientists say they have found a class of immune cells that could one day be used as a “one size fits all” therapy for most cancers. T-cell immunotherapies—in which immune cells are harvested from the patient, genetically modified to search and destroy a cancer, grown in vast quantities in a lab, and then returned to the patient’s bloodstream—are at the cutting edge of cancer treatment. They have proved highly effective against some cancers, yet so far have had no success against solid tumors, which make up the majority of cancers. But while examining human blood for immune cells that could fight bacteria, researchers at Cardiff University came across a T-cell with a new type of receptor—proteins that let immune cells “see” at a chemical level. Tests revealed that this T-cell can identify and kill cancers of the lung, skin, blood, colon, breast, bone, prostate, ovaries, kidney, and cervix. To create a treatment, T-cells harvested from a patient would be reprogrammed to make the receptor. While the therapy has shown promise in lab tests on mice with human cancers, many more safety checks are needed before human trials can begin. But researchers say this could be a significant moment in the fight against cancer. “There’s a chance here to treat every patient,” lead author Andrew Sewell tells BBC.com. “Previously nobody believed this could be possible.” ■