Cancer immunology is the study of interactions between the immune system and cancer cells (also called tumors or malignancies). It is also a growing field of research that aims to discover innovative cancer immunotherapies to treat and retard progression of this disease. The immune response, including the recognition of cancer-specific antigens is of particular interest in this field as knowledge gained drives the development of new vaccines and antibody therapies. For instance in 2007, Ohtani published a paper finding tumour infiltrating lymphocytes to be quite significant in human colorectal cancer. The host was given a better chance at survival if the cancer tissue showed infiltration of inflammatory cells, in particular lymphocytic reactions. The results yielded suggest some extent of anti-tumour immunity is present in colorectal cancers in humans.
Over the past 10 years there has been notable progress and an accumulation of scientific evidence for the concept of cancer immunosurveillance and immunoediting based on (i) protection against development of spontaneous and chemically induced tumors in animal systems and (ii) identification of targets for immune recognition of human cancer.
Read more about Cancer Immunology: Immunosurveillance, Immunoediting, Cancer Immunology and Chemotherapy, The Role of Viruses in Cancer Development
Famous quotes containing the word cancer:
“We “need” cancer because, by the very fact of its incurability, it makes all other diseases, however virulent, not cancer.”
—Gilbert Adair, British author, critic. “Under the Sign of Cancer,” Myths and Memories (1986)