immunotherapy: a new answer to cancer A promising and scientifically advanced cancer therapy If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with cancer, you may have already heard of immunotherapy. This site is a place for you to learn more about this promising and scientifically advanced cancer therapy. One of the things that makes cancer immunotherapy unique is that it uses the power of the body’s own immune system to treat cancer. Here’s how immunotherapy can help provide answers in cancer treatment: Boosts the immune system overall • The immune system does a good job of protecting the body from harmful things (eg, bacteria and viruses) • Cancer can suppress the immune system and prevent it from protecting your body • Immunotherapy can give your immune system the boost it needs to help fight cancer more effectively • Provides immune system components that help specifically recognize and eliminate cancer cells • Cancer cells are derived from the body’s own cells, so your immune system may not always recognize them as harmful • Cancer cells can “outsmart” your immune system by disguising themselves in multiple ways • Immunotherapy can help make the immune system “smarter” about recognizing and targeting cancer cells The benefits of cancer immunotherapy Because of the way cancer immunotherapy partners with the immune system, and its unique characteristics, it can offer a number of important advantages, such as: • Power to target cancer in a specific way • Ability to work on many types of cancer—even some that do not respond to chemotherapy or radiation • Potential for reduced side effects commonly associated with traditional chemotherapy (eg, nausea, vomiting, hair loss) • Possibility for long-term remissions
Posted on: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 16:42:15 +0000