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lung cancer treatment takes step forward with immunotherapy and chemotherapy research

new research surrounding immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy shows promise for non-small cell lung cancers.

by angelica bottaro

apr 29 2024
read time 3 minute read
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new combinational cancer therapy could change the future of cancer treatment. getty images

new research on the effects of immunotherapy and chemotherapy used together against early-stage non-small cell lung cancers has found that tapping into the powers of the body’s own defences may just be the future of cancer treatment.

a new study published in jama network open looked at survival rates of those with non-small cell cancer when using immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy and found that those who were treated with both had improved survival rates.

the participants also had improved scores of pathologic complete response, which is the disappearance of any signs of cancer. the results show a high level of promise for future cancer therapies, giving people who develop cancer a better treatment experience and overall higher rates of survival.

the immune system and cancer

the immune system is a collection of organs, tissues, glands, and cells that work as a battle team to keep your body safe from harmful pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi. when a threat enters the body, the immune system is immediately alerted and goes to work to find the harmful agent, isolate it, and destroy it so it can’t do any permanent damage.
when it comes to cancer, the immune system has an identification process that allows it to find and kill emerging cancer cells to keep the body healthy and free of disease using specialized white blood cells, known as t-cells. in many cases where cancer does develop, the immune system is simply not strong enough to kill those cells before they can multiply and develop into a tumour.

what is immunotherapy?

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immunotherapy isn’t new. in fact, dr. william bradley coley was the first medical professional to attempt to use the immune system to treat cancer in 1891. a lot has happened in medical advancement since then, and now, the immunotherapies available are much more advanced than the “father of immunotherapy” dr. coley could have imagined.
that said, the work of dr. coley paved the way for the immunotherapy of today, which activates or suppresses the action of the immune system as a way to treat any number of diseases. for example, certain autoimmune diseases—where the immune system attacks healthy cells—are treated using immunotherapy that slows the immune response and its ability to fight, leading to less damage to the system.
when it comes to cancer, medications are used to boost the action of the immune system so that it can fight off cancer on its own or with the help of other therapies such as chemotherapy or radiation. research continues to test out different and new immunotherapies for cancer, but as of writing, only 15 to 20 per cent of people respond to this type of therapy. it also doesn’t work for all types of cancer.
however, the recent study regarding immunotherapy and non-small cell lung cancer aims to change the direction of immunotherapy in a more beneficial way for patients.

immunotherapy and non-small cell lung cancer

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the study used neoadjuvant immune checkpoint inhibitors (icis). icis are a form of cancer immunotherapy that targets certain checkpoints in the body that encourage the growth of cancer cells by protecting them from immune cells designed to kill them.
when these checkpoints are essentially “turned off,” the immune system can better attack cancer cells. when used alongside chemotherapy to help shrink tumours, the two therapies work together to create a viable and effective treatment for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer.
the study’s results showed that this combinational approach to treatment improved two metrics: the 2-year event-free survival and the pathologic complete response. the 2-year event-free survival is the time a participant lives past the trial without recurrence, progression, or complications from cancer or its treatment. the pathologic complete response, as mentioned above, is the term used to characterize a person who no longer has signs of cancer in the body.
while the results of the study show promise, more research and future clinical trials are needed to collect more data on the effects of the combinational therapy to see just how viable it is, what cancers it can be used for, and whether or not the success rate is higher than other forms of cancer treatment on the market on a grand scale.
angelica bottaro
angelica bottaro

angelica bottaro is the lead editor at healthing.ca, and has been content writing for over a decade, specializing in all things health. her goal as a health journalist is to bring awareness and information to people that they can use as an additional tool toward their own optimal health.

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