Why in news? A new development front on treatment of cancer, holding the attention of many researchers worldwide, is the CAR T-cell therapy.

Highlights

• The three major forms of treatment for any cancer are surgery (removing the cancer), radiotherapy (delivering ionising radiation to the tumour), and systemic therapy (administering medicines that act on the tumour).

What are CAR T-cells?

• CAR T-cell therapies use a patient’s own cells and are modified in the laboratory to activate T-cells, a component of immune cells, to attack tumours.
• These modified cells are then infused back into the patient’s bloodstream after conditioning them to multiply more effectively.
• The cells are even more specific than targeted agents and directly activate the patient’s immune system against cancer, making the treatment more clinically effective. This is why they’re called ‘living drugs’

Where is it used?

• CAR T-cell therapy has been approved for leukaemias (cancers arising from the cells that produce white blood cells) and lymphomas (arising from the lymphatic system).
• Even for solid tumours like those of the prostate, lung, colon, and some other organs, CAR T-cell therapy has shown results, particularly in patients whose tumours have recurred or have evaded multiple lines of treatment.
• In certain kinds of leukaemias and lymphomas, the efficacy is as high as 90%, whereas in other types of cancers it is significantly lower.

What are cell therapies?

• Cell therapies include personalised anti-cancer vaccines and tumour infiltrating lymphocyte therapies (where white blood cells that attack the tumour are extracted, modified, and reintroduced into the patient).