Although there isn’t a cure for cancer at this time, scientists are looking into some novel treatments that could one day transform the way the disease is treated, such as vaccines and gene editing. A class of diseases known as cancer is distinguished by abnormal cell growth. These cells can invade various bodily tissues, which can cause major health issues. After heart disease, cancer is the second most common cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Is there a real treatment for cancer at the moment, though?

Will we ever cure cancer?

The distinction between a cure and remission must be made to respond to the question, “Is there a cure for cancer? If so, how close are we?. A full recovery from cancer indicates that all signs of the disease have been removed from the body and that recurrence is unlikely. Remission. Remission denotes a decrease in or complete absence of cancerous signs. A person in remission may exhibit little to no physical evidence of cancerous cells. Generally speaking, there are two types of remission: a complete remission, in which the cancer is not showing any symptoms. a partial remission, in which there is still cancer present but the tumor has shrunk. Cancer cells can reappear in the body even after they have completely disappeared.

This implies that the cancer may return. If this occurs, it usually does so in the first five years following therapy. Even though some medical professionals might refer to cancer as “cured” if it doesn’t recur within five years, cancer is never really cured because it can always return. This is why most medical professionals will refer to a patient as being “in remission” rather than “cured.”. We will be looking at novel and cutting-edge cancer treatments in this article. These more recent therapies can be administered in addition to or instead of more traditional cancer treatments like radiation and chemotherapy. Now let’s get started.

Immunotherapy

Cancer immunotherapy is a type of treatment that helps the immune system fight cancer cells. The immune system is made up of various organs, cells, and tissues that help the body fight off outside invaders, including:

bacteria, viruses, parasites…
However, cancer cells are a part of us and aren’t seen by our bodies as invaders. Because of this, the immune system may need help identifying them. There are several ways to provide this help.

Vaccines

Most likely, when you consider vaccinations, you consider them concerning the prevention of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, measles, and the flu. Certain vaccines, however, can aid in the prevention or even treatment of specific cancers. For instance, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine offers defense against a variety of HPV strains that can result in throat, cervix, and anus cancers. Furthermore, a chronic hepatitis B virus infection, which can result in liver cancer, is avoided by receiving the hepatitis B vaccine. The vaccine known as Bacillus Calmette-Geurin (BCG) is typically administered to treat tuberculosis, but it can also be used in the treatment of bladder cancer. During this treatment, a catheter delivers BCG directly to the bladder, stimulating the body’s immune system to target and destroy bladder cancer cells.

Additionally, scientists are working to develop a vaccine that directly supports the immune system’s defense against cancer. Typically, the surface of cancer cells contains molecules absent from healthy cells. These molecules may be included in a vaccine that improves the immune system’s ability to identify and eliminate cancer cells. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has only approved one vaccine to treat cancer thus far. Sipuleucel-T, also known as Provenge, is a medication used to treat advanced prostate cancer in patients who have not responded to prior therapies. The fact that this vaccine is customized makes it special. After being extracted from the body, immune cells are altered in a lab to identify prostate cancer cells. After that, they are reinjected into the body to support the immune system’s search for and elimination of cancerous cells. A review from 2021 states that scientists are now in the process of creating and evaluating novel vaccinations to treat specific forms of cancer. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) states that these vaccines are occasionally tested in conjunction with approved cancer medications.

Some examples of cancers with vaccines that have been or are currently being tested are:

Pancreatic cancer
Melanoma
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)
Breast cancer
Multiple myeloma

T-cell therapy

One type of immune cell is the T-cell. They function to eliminate external invaders that your immune system has identified. These cells are taken out of the body and sent to a lab for T-cell therapy. The cells that exhibit the highest degree of reactivity against cancerous cells are isolated and cultured in vast quantities. Then, your body receives another injection of these T-cells. CAR T-cell therapy is a particular kind of T-cell therapy. T-cells are taken out and altered to have a receptor added to their surface during treatment. When cancer cells are reintroduced into your body, this aids the T-cells’ ability to identify and eliminate them more effectively. Six CAR T-cell therapies have received FDA approval as of this writing. These are used to treat blood cancers, such as multiple myeloma and certain forms of leukemias and lymphomas.

In general, CAR T-cell therapy is advised in cases where prior cancer therapies have failed. It has some potentially dangerous side effects, but it can also help patients with cancers that are difficult to treat. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) is one of these. This occurs when a significant amount of chemicals known as cytokines are released into the bloodstream by the freshly reintroduced T-cells. The immune system may go into overdrive as a result. Following CAR T-cell therapy, major neurological side effects such as seizures and confusion have also been reported. Clinical trials are underway to investigate the potential applications of this therapy for other cancer types, such as solid tumors, which can present challenges for CAR T-cell penetration. Additionally, researchers are looking into more effective ways to control the side effects of CAR T-cell therapy.

Monoclonal antibodies

The B cell, another kind of immune cell, produces antibodies, which are proteins. They can attach to antigens, which are particular targets that they can recognize. T lymphocytes can locate and eliminate antigens once an antibody has bound to them. Antibodies that recognize antigens typically found on the surface of cancer cells are produced in large quantities as part of monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapy. Once inside the body, they can assist in identifying and eliminating cancer cells. Many types of mAbs have been developed for cancer therapy. Some examples include:

Alemtuzumab (Campath). This mAb binds selectively to a protein that is highly expressed on the surface of both T and B cell lymphocytes. By targeting this specific protein, both the T and B cells are marked for destruction, which helps your body get rid of any cancer-containing cells.

Trastuzumab (Herceptin). This mAb is specific for HER2, a protein found on some breast cancer cells, and promotes their growth. Trastuzumab binds to HER2, which blocks its activity. This stops or slows the growth of breast cancer cells.

Blinatumomab (Blincyto). Given that it contains two distinct mAbs, this therapy is regarded as both a T-cell therapy and a mAb. One adheres to the cells of the cancer, and the other to the cells of the immune system. This combines the two cell types and makes the cancer cells vulnerable to immune system attack. It is presently used to treat acute lymphocytic leukemia and medications akin to it are being created to treat conditions like myeloma.

Additionally, monoclonal antibodies can be linked to chemotherapy medications or radioactive particles. We refer to these as conjugated mAbs. These cancer-fighting agents can be delivered straight to cancer cells because the antibodies are specific for antigens on cancer cells.

Ibritumomab tiuxetan (Zevalin).Zevalin, or ibritumomab tiuxetan. Because this mAb has a radioactive particle attached to it, when the antibody binds, radioactivity can be delivered straight to the cancer cells. It is applied to treat certain non-Hodgkin lymphoma types. Emtansine (ado-trastuzumab) (Kadcyla). There is a chemotherapy drug attached to this antibody. The medication is released into the cancer cells by the antibody once it has been attached. Certain forms of breast cancer are treated with it.

Virotherapy

As a normal part of their life cycle, many virus species kill their host cell. This makes viruses a promising cancer treatment option. The use of viruses to specifically destroy cancer cells is known as virotherapy. Oncolytic viruses are the type of viruses used in virotherapy. They have undergone genetic modification so they can only replicate and target cancer cells. According to the NCI, antigens linked to cancer are released when an oncolytic virus destroys a cancer cell. Following their binding to these antigens, antibodies can start an immune reaction. Although multiple viruses are being investigated by researchers for this kind of treatment, only one has received approval thus far. It is a modified form of the herpes virus known as talimogene laherparepvec (T-VEC). It is used to treat skin cancer caused by melanoma that is not surgically treatable.

Oncolytic viruses are still being researched as a potential cancer treatment. A review published in 2020 examined research on oncolytic viruses conducted between 2000 and 2020. There were 97 distinct clinical trials identified, the majority of which were phase 1. Melanoma and digestive cancers were the most common cancer types targeted by virotherapy. The most studied oncolytic virus was a modified adenovirus. Only 7 of the studies included information on the levels of tumor-specific immune response, according to the reviewers.

Hormone therapy

Hormones are naturally produced by the body and function as messengers between the various tissues and cells in your body. They support the regulation of numerous bodily processes. Certain hormone levels can have an impact on the growth of certain cancers. For this reason, hormone therapy employs medication to prevent hormone production. Certain types of cancer cells can have their growth and survival impacted by changes in hormone levels. These cancers can grow more slowly if a necessary hormone is blocked or its level is lowered. Prostate, uterine, and breast cancers are occasionally treated with hormone therapy. It frequently serves as a supplement to other cancer treatments like targeted therapy or chemotherapy.

Nanoparticles

Nanoparticles are extremely small particles, much smaller than a cell. Because of their size, they can move around the body and interact with various biological molecules and cells. In particular, nanoparticles hold great promise for drug delivery in the treatment of cancer. Nanoparticles have the potential to be used in drug delivery systems that can target cancer cells and penetrate tissue barriers, like the blood-brain barrier. This could reduce side effects and increase the efficacy of cancer treatments.

Additionally, nanoparticles might have an impact on the immune system. In a 2020 study, immune cells were trained to mount an attack against cancer cells using a nanoparticle-based system in mice. Additionally, this strategy increased the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. The FDA has approved several nanoparticle-based delivery systems for the treatment of cancer, even though the kinds of nanoparticle therapy we just covered are still in the research and development stage. These systems use nanoparticles to more effectively deliver cancer drugs. A few cancer medications that might make use of a nanoparticle-based delivery system are doxorubicin (Doxil) and paclitaxel (Abraxane).

There are currently clinical trials underway for additional nanoparticle-based cancer treatments. A list of ongoing clinical trials using nanoparticles to treat cancer is available on the U. S. Clinical Trials, National Library of Medicine. There are representations of numerous cancers, such as lung, prostate, and breast cancers.

In summary, there is presently no conclusive treatment for cancer. There is always a chance that cancer may recur, even in cases where a patient has experienced complete remission. Still, scientists are working hard to create fresher, more potent cancer therapies. Hormone therapy, immunotherapies such as monoclonal antibodies, CAR T-cell therapy, and cancer vaccines are some of the treatments that are currently being used in addition to more traditional cancer therapies. Nanoparticles and gene editing, particularly with the CRISPR system, are other important research areas. Even though these technologies are still in the early phases of development, preliminary research and testing have produced encouraging outcomes.

REFERENCES:
https://www.healthline.com/health/is-there-a-cure-for-cancer#resources

Medications that have been suggested by doctors worldwide are available here

https://mygenericpharmacy.com/index.php/therapy,10