Immunotherapy: A New Principle of Cancer Therapy

Abstract

Immunotherapy, also called biologic therapy, is a type of cancer treatment that boosts the body’s natural defence systems to fight cancer. It uses substances made by the body or in laboratory to improve or restore immune system function. Earlier cancer treatment consisted of surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and horrmonal treatments. In recent years, immunotherapy has become an important therapeutic alternative, and is now the first choice in many cases. One of the greatest achievements with monoclonal antibodies is their use in human therapy. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are not specifically directed to tumor cells and may also affect healthy tissue. Antibodies can provide specificity and lower toxicity, opening new therapeutic possibilities. The objective is for the antibody to act as a transporter for the cancer-killing agent, concentrating the agent directly in the cancer cell, with minimal damage to healthy cells. Although conjugated antibodies showed toxicity in the past, more recent approaches under development appear to decrease unwanted side effects. Drugs known as immune checkpoint inhibitors can physically block the checkpoint CTLA-4, a protein receptor which frees the immune system to attack the cancerous cells. A single T-cell can kill thousands of cancer cells. © 2019 iGlobal Research and Publishing Foundation. All rights reserved. Cite this article as: Kaur, H.; Sodhi, R.K.; babu, A. Immunotherapy: a new principle of cancer therapy. Indo Global J. Pharm. Sci., 2019; 9(2Suppl.): 117. DOI: http://doi.org/10.35652/IGJPS.2019.92S15 . Indo Global Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences( ISSN 2249 1023; CODENIGJPAI; NLM ID: 101610675) indexed and abstracted in CrossRef (DOI Enabling), UGC CARE Journal List, EMBASE(Elsevier), National Library of Medicine (NLM) Catalog, ResearchGate, Publons, CAS (ACS), Index Copernicus, Google Scholar and many more. For further details, visit http://iglobaljournal.com This is a special issue as an outcome of ‘RAPSCON-2019’ sponsored by APTI and organized by Sri Sai College of Pharmacy, Manawala, Amritsar, Punjab, India. Relaxation offered in journal format.