BC Cancer Foundation - Winter 2015 - (Page 8)

A Monumental Cancer Leap inTreatment Immunotherapy is the new kid on the block in cancer treatments-and it's generating a lot of buzz A Drs. Anna Tinker and Brad Nelson lead the immunotherapy clinical program. 8 PARTNERS IN DISCOVERY s cancer treatments have been steadily improving and expanding under the traditional methods-chemo, radiation and surgery-scientists have been beavering away in the lab, convinced that our own immune systems can play a more effective role. Immunotherapy is an approach to cancer treatment that enhances the body's natural potential to eliminate cancer in much the same way it wards off the common cold or flu. While flying under the radar for decades, this treatment approach is now ready to take the main stage in B.C. as scientists and clinicians collaborate to launch an immunotherapy clinical trials program. The goal: to collect, activate and expand a patient's own tumour-reactive T cells and infuse massive quantities of them back into the patient's bloodstream. "There's no question that immunotherapy is the most exciting area in oncology right now and that's because it's starting to have striking, durable effects against many different types of cancer," says Dr. Brad Nelson, director of the BC Cancer Agency's Deeley Research Centre in Victoria. He has been collaborating with Dr. Rob Holt's team at the Genome Sciences Centre to perfect personalized immunotherapy treatments, specifically focusing on an approach called Adoptive T cell Therapy.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BC Cancer Foundation - Winter 2015

BC Cancer Foundation - Winter 2015
Opening Thoughts
Healthy Insights
Why I Give
Researcher Profile
A Monumental Leap in Cancer Treatment
Solving the Mystery of Treatment Failure
A Picture with Life- Saving Properties
Legacy Giving

BC Cancer Foundation - Winter 2015