Immune therapy is considered to be the most developed aspect of the current cancer treatment program but, for years, scientists have been trying to look for new and more effective ways to treat cancer. Now, a new research study has uncovered a key element that, scientists hope, could be the answer to this conundrum.
The discovery of the molecule NF-kB has given researchers new insight on how cancer cells are able to evade the body's immune action. According to senior researcher Denis Guttridge from the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, this information poses a significant impact on improving cancer treatment since it means that drugs that are able to target this molecule by inhibiting its action could help maximize the effects of immune therapy.
"We've long known that NF-kB promotes cancer development by subverting apoptosis, an internal safety mechanism that otherwise would cause cancer cells to self-destruct. This study shows that NF-kB might coordinate a network of immune-suppressor genes whose products enable tumor cells to evade adaptive immunity," Prof. Guttridge explains. This suggests that blocking the NF-kB molecule could make it distinctly possible to make tumor cells more vulnerable to elimination.
In normal cells, NF-kB helps repair faulty DNA in order to prevent harmful side effects. However, they behave differently in cancer cells. The research study showed that macrophages, cells that are released by the immune system, migrate into the tumor at its earliest stages of development and releases tumor necrosis factor to instigate cell death. Apparently, NF-kB allows the tumor cells to survive this action and researchers believe that it is also responsible for regulating a number of immunosuppression genes. Prof. Guttridge concluded by saying, "Overall, our findings demonstrate that NF-kB might play a vital role in enabling cells to evade surveillance by both innate and adaptive immune cells."