Sarah Diepstraten, WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research) and John (Eddie) La Marca, WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research)
Could mRNA vaccines be the next big thing for melanoma?
Until now, chemo and radiation therapy have been main cancer treatments but they can also damage healthy tissues. Immunotherapy uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer with minimal harm
A personalised mRNA vaccine would use the body’s immune system to fight cancer.
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Cancer vaccines have gained much interest among scientists but face a number of hurdles. A new mRNA vaccine for glioma offers a step forward in training the immune system to fight cancer.
Recent investigations into honey’s allergy-alleviating potential have yielded intriguing results.
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Honey has long been used as a natural remedy for many ailments.
This microscopy image shows a cytotoxic T cell (blue) attacking a cancer cell (green) by releasing toxic chemicals (red).
Alex Ritter and Jennifer Lippincott Schwartz and Gillian Griffiths/National Institutes of Health via Flickr
T cells recognize and kill cancer cells but quickly lose their effectiveness. This fast dysfunction may help explain why immunotherapy doesn’t lead to long-term remission for many patients.
Immunotherapies, such as cancer vaccines, help train the immune system to fight off cancer.
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Sublingual immunotherapy reduces hay fever symptoms by changing the immune system’s response to allergens.
Gain-of-function experiments in the lab can help researchers get ahead of viruses naturally gaining the ability to infect people in the wild.
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From cancer immunotherapy and antibiotics to GMO crops and pandemic surveillance, gain of function is a cornerstone of basic research.
Most tumors are made up of many different kinds of cancer cells, as shown in this pancreatic cancer sample from a mouse.
Ravikanth Maddipati/Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania via National Cancer Institute
Cancer vaccines are an emerging personalised treatment for cancer. Using the same mRNA technology as COVID vaccines, they stimulate the immune system to destroy cancer cells.
Moderna is testing an mRNA vaccine in combination with pembrolizumab to treat melanoma.
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Gregory Allen, University of California, San Francisco
Immunotherapy has the potential to eliminate tumors, but works best for select patients. Engineering T cells to bypass cancer’s defenses could help expand treatment eligibility to more patients.
Identified in boxer dogs in 1984, the parasite Neospora caninum is harmless to humans, yet has been shown to be effective against tumour cells in mice.
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October is awash in seas of pink T-shirts, balloons and ribbons in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. But this messaging fails to recognize people who are not cured of the disease.
It’s a long-term treatment – people having allergen immunotherapy typically notice improved symptoms after six to 12 months.
Stem cell transplants involve completely eliminating and then replacing the immune system of a patient, often by transplanting the bone marrow.
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Patients with blood cancer undergoing stem cell transplantation have a high risk of complications. The bacteria in their gut, however, can help their immune system recover and fight infections.
Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg with Moshe Biton (right) and Aviv Regev (left). The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is one of the major funders of the Human Cell Atlas.
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
Pioneered by the Human Cell Atlas consortium, our understanding of the human body is about to be transformed – and with it, the way we treat and prevent disease
Dendritic cells (green) produce cytokines like IL-12, which can train T cells (pink) to attack tumors.
Victor Segura Ibarra and Rita Serda/National Cancer Institute via Flickr
Aslan Mansurov, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
One promising cancer treatment has been in the works for decades, but severe side effects have kept it out of the clinic. A reengineered version may offer a way to safely harness its potent effects.
Anticipating when cancer cells become resistant to treatment can help oncologists more quickly adjust their therapies.
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Applying the principles of ecology and evolution could help oncologists anticipate cancer drug resistance and optimize their treatment plans for patients.