How is Immunotherapy Used to Fight Cancer? | Dana-Farber Cancer Institute | Science Illustrated

How does immunotherapy fight cancer? If you take the brakes off the immune system, you can unleash an attack on cancer cells. That's the theory behind PD-1/PD-L1, a vitally important immunotherapy discovery illustrated in this video.

You can learn more about the PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors and how Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is using immunotherapy here: http://www.dana-farber.org/Newsroom/P...


Transcription:

Hello, and welcome to Dana-Farber Science Illustrated. Today, we’re going to be taking a closer look at how scientists use drug agents to help our immune system discover cancerous cells.
Our bodies are made up of trillions of cells, which work together to keep us healthy. One group of white blood cells, known as T-cells, act as our own, personal guards. They patrol our bodies relentlessly for signs of infection or other diseases and attack them aggressively. While on patrol, T-cells use specialized protein receptors on their surface to latch onto cells and fully inspect them for signs that they may be cancerous. Once they’ve made a confirmation, T-cells summon an attack on diseased cells. However, sometimes the T-cells aren’t able to recognize the bad cancer cells, and they never attack. Scientists have found that many cancer cells carry proteins that act like masks and allow them to blend in with healthy cells. One protein in particular that cancer cells use for this deception is called PD-L1. When T-cells use their PD-1 protein to latch onto cancer cells’ PD-L1 protein, they’re fooled into thinking that cancerous cells are actually healthy ones. They then leave the cancer cells alone and allow them to go on multiplying in the body. Scientists realized that if they could find a way to block PD-L1 on cancer cells, then the T-cells could unleash an attack on them. This discovery led to the development of drugs made from natural, human antibodies that block PD-1/PD-L1 protein interaction. The T-cells are then able to recognize the cancer cells and begin their attack.
Thank you for joining us on this brief look at the exciting field of Immunotherapy. For more information, visit discovercarebelieve.org. And, until next time, this has been Dana-Farber Science Illustrated.