Scientists Create Cancer-Fighting Immune Cells Right in the Body
For years, one of the most powerful weapons against certain blood cancers, called CAR-T therapy, has required an elaborate process: Doctors extract a patient’s immune cells, ship them to a specialized facility where they’re genetically reprogrammed to fight cancer, then ship them back for infusion into the patient’s bloodstream. This has revolutionized cancer treatment, but the time and expense place it out of reach for thousands of patients.
Now, scientists at UC San Francisco have developed a method to precisely reprogram these cancer-fighting cells directly inside the body, potentially eliminating those barriers.
“I think this is just the beginning of a big wave of new therapies that will be truly transformational and save a lot of lives,” said Justin Eyquem, PhD, an associate professor of medicine at UCSF, member of the Weill Cancer Hub West, and the senior author of the new paper. “I’m incredibly excited to be part of it.”