Intratumoral immunotherapy: the most important success principle

the most important location to generate an immune response against cancer is in cancer itself. Though don’t think this is just a local treatment. Teaching the immune system to attack cancer in one location can then learn to attack cancer in other sites of the body. By injecting into the tumor, we can use much more extensive immunotherapy combinations. The key to cancer immunotherapy success is a combination of agents to target many areas that cancer uses to escape standard immunotherapy.

Off label medications to boost immunotherapy

medications used for other conditions besides cancer can be repurposed to help enhance the immune response.

The gut microbiome: a key foundation to your immune response

though there is still much to understand between the interplay of the microbiome and cancer immunotherapy, there are basic bacterial patterns associated with an improved response. Recent advances in supplementation have made it possible to improve these aspects without needing to go for a fecal transplant. We have a plan to enhance your microbiome to achieve maximize immunotherapy potential.

Targeting hypoxia in tumors

hypoxic areas of tumors can generate a global control of immunosuppression, treatment resistance, tumor growth, and increased metastasis. Imaging techniques can identify hypoxic regions that are targeted for destruction, typically by intratumoral injections or ablative procedures.

Heat up the tumor immune microenvironment.

Successful standard immunotherapy generally depends on immune cells seeing and infiltrating cancer, called “immunologically hot.” this is the minority of cancers, which corresponds to most patients’ lack of response. For patients to achieve success, tumors need to be “heated up” or “primed.” this involves injecting specific immune agents directly into the tumor to attract immune cells to cancer.

Mental aspects of immunotherapy

though we don’t understand it well, there is undoubtedly a mental component to the immune response—the neuro-immuno axis. Meditation and exercise can certainly play a significant role. Also, being hopeful, there is no more reason to have hope than knowing you trust your care to the experts in cancer immunotherapy at williams cancer institute.

Advanced testing to predict and target immunotherapy escape mechanisms

when you target cancer with specific immunotherapies, it upregulates other receptors to allow for escape. These receptors can also be immunotherapy targets. Though we have developed a combination of agents that work well in many cases, we do have the ability to adjust and adapt therapy. Advanced testing such as nanostring and multiplex ihc can allow us to identify and target these areas.