Immunotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that has been revolutionizing the way doctors treat cancer. Unlike traditional treatments like chemotherapy and radiation, which attack both cancerous and healthy cells, immunotherapy works by using the body’s immune system to target cancer cells specifically.
What is Immunotherapy?
Immunotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses the patient’s own immune system to fight cancer. It works by using drugs to activate or boost the immune system, making it better able to recognize and attack cancer cells. Immunotherapy can be used to treat many different types of cancer, including melanoma, lung cancer, and bladder cancer.
How Does Immunotherapy Work?
There are several types of immunotherapies, but they all work by either activating the immune system or removing the “brakes” that prevent the immune system from attacking cancer cells.
One common type of immunotherapy is checkpoint inhibitors, which block proteins on cancer cells that prevent the immune system from attacking them.
Another type is CAR T-cell therapy, which involves removing a patient’s T-cells and modifying them to better target cancer cells before returning them to the patient’s body.
Benefits of Immunotherapy for Cancer Patients
One of the main benefits of immunotherapy is that it is often less toxic than traditional cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation. Because it targets cancer cells specifically, it can cause fewer side effects than other treatments. Immunotherapy has also shown promise in treating cancers that have traditionally been difficult to treat, such as melanoma and lung cancer.
