Adoptive Cell Therapy

Definition

Adoptive cell therapy is a type of immunotherapy that involves the transfer of a patient's own immune cells, which have been modified or expanded ex vivo, back into the patient to treat various diseases, particularly cancer. It harnesses the power of the body's immune system to recognize and destroy target cells.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Adoptive cell therapy involves the isolation, expansion, and reinfusion of a patient's own immune cells to enhance their ability to recognize and eliminate target cells, such as cancer cells.
2. The modified immune cells can be T-cells, natural killer (NK) cells, or other immune cell types, depending on the specific therapy.
3. Adoptive cell therapy has shown promising results in the treatment of various cancers, including hematological malignancies and solid tumors.
4. Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy is a type of adoptive cell therapy where T-cells are genetically engineered to express a receptor that recognizes a specific tumor antigen.
5. Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs) are a type of adoptive cell therapy where a patient's own T-cells that have infiltrated the tumor are isolated, expanded, and then reinfused to enhance the immune response against the cancer.

Review Questions

• Explain the general concept of adoptive cell therapy and how it differs from other cancer immunotherapy approaches.
  • Adoptive cell therapy involves the isolation, modification, and expansion of a patient's own immune cells, typically T-cells or natural killer cells, and then reinfusing them back into the patient to enhance the immune system's ability to recognize and destroy cancer cells. This approach differs from other cancer immunotherapy approaches, such as checkpoint inhibitors or cancer vaccines, which aim to stimulate the patient's existing immune system without directly modifying the immune cells themselves.
• Describe the key steps involved in the development and administration of Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, a specific type of adoptive cell therapy.
  • In CAR T-cell therapy, the patient's own T-cells are extracted and genetically modified to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that can recognize a specific tumor antigen. The modified T-cells are then expanded in the laboratory and reinfused into the patient. The CAR on the T-cells binds to the target antigen on the cancer cells, triggering the T-cells to attack and destroy the tumor cells. This targeted approach allows for a more potent and specific immune response compared to traditional cancer treatments.
• Analyze the potential advantages and challenges associated with the use of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs) in adoptive cell therapy for cancer treatment.
  • The use of TILs in adoptive cell therapy has several potential advantages. TILs are already primed to recognize and target the patient's specific tumor antigens, as they have naturally infiltrated the tumor site. By isolating, expanding, and reinfusing these TILs, the therapy can harness the patient's own immune cells that are best equipped to recognize and eliminate the cancer. However, challenges include the difficulty in consistently obtaining sufficient numbers of TILs, the heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment, and the potential for the tumor to develop resistance mechanisms. Careful patient selection, optimization of TIL isolation and expansion protocols, and combination with other therapies may help address these challenges and improve the efficacy of TIL-based adoptive cell therapy.

Related terms

Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell Therapy: A form of adoptive cell therapy where T-cells are genetically engineered to express a chimeric antigen receptor that can recognize and bind to specific tumor antigens, leading to the targeted destruction of cancer cells.

Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs): A type of adoptive cell therapy where a patient's own T-cells that have infiltrated the tumor are isolated, expanded, and then re-infused back into the patient to enhance the immune response against the cancer.

Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation: A form of adoptive cell therapy where stem cells from a donor are transplanted into a patient, often used to treat blood cancers and other hematological disorders by replacing the patient's immune system with the donor's.