Predicting Treatment Success with Immunotherapy: Scientists Discover Potential Methods for Foreseeing Results
Immunotherapy: Unmasking Cancer with Genetic Clues
In the ongoing battle against cancer, the latest weapon is immunotherapy. However, not every cancer patient benefits from this treatment. Researchers from Johns Hopkins believe they've found a solution: a specific subset of mutations within cancer tumors that hint at a tumor's receptiveness to immunotherapy.
Immunotherapy leverages our immune system to wage war on the disease. Oftentimes, cancer cells remain hidden due to mutations. Immunotherapy gives the immune system a boost, helping it detect and annihilate those rogue cells.
Presently, immunotherapy is effective against several cancers, including breast cancer, melanoma, leukemia, and non-small cell lung cancer. Research for other applications is underway, including prostate, brain, and ovarian cancers.
Traditionally, doctors examine the Tumor Mutation Burden (TMB) to gauge a tumor's responsiveness to immunotherapy. This is the collective number of changes in the tumor's genetic material—or mutations. However, anomalies within these mutations can significantly impact a tumor's visibility to the immune system, and consequently, its response to immunotherapy.
Johns Hopkins researchers identify a specific subset of persistent mutations that don't disappear as cancer evolves. This keeps the cancer tumor visible to the immune system, improving its response to immunotherapy. In essence, these persistent mutations act as a beacon guiding the immune system to the cancer cells.
"Persistent mutations are always there in cancer cells and these mutations may render the cancer cells continuously visible to the immune system eliciting an attack. This response is augmented in the context of immune checkpoint blockade and the immune system continues to eliminate cancer cells harboring these persistent mutations over time, resulting in sustained immunologic tumor control and long survival," explained Dr. Valsamo Anagnostou, a senior researcher from Johns Hopkins and a key figure in the study.
The Johns Hopkins team's findings have the potential to revolutionize the way doctors select patients for immunotherapy and predict treatment outcomes. Their research was recently published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine.
Inside the cancer research community, the findings were met with enthusiasm. Dr. Kim Margolin, a medical oncologist from the Saint John's Cancer Institute in California, praised the study, stating, "[t]hese findings demonstrate that a highly-respected collaborative group has gone beyond the simple concept of tumor mutation burden and defined persistent mutations and their impact on cancer treatment in a new light."
The next steps, according to Dr. Margolin, likely involve using high-throughput, next-generation sequencing techniques to examine patients' mutational spectrum. This data will enable doctors to categorize patients according to their likelihood of responding to immunotherapy, providing personalized care and improving treatment outcomes for cancer patients.
[1] Source: Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes. Nature. (2015).
[3] Source: BRAF V600E Melanoma Diagnosis, Treatment & Pathophysiology (StatPearls Publishing). (2021).
[5] Source: Mismatch Repair Deficiency as a Biomarker for Immunotherapy in Cancer (Elsevier). (2021).
- The immune system can be utilized to combat cancer through a treatment called immunotherapy, but not all cancer patients respond favorably to it.
- The Johns Hopkins team has discovered a specific subset of persistent mutations within cancer tumors that might help the immune system detect and annihilate rogue cells, making the tumor more vulnerable to immunotherapy.
- These persistent mutations act as a beacon, attracting the attention of the immune system, which aids in the elimination of cancer cells harboring these mutations over time.
- Doctors may soon be able to categorize patients based on their likelihood of responding to immunotherapy, thanks to research into persistent mutations and high-throughput, next-generation sequencing techniques.
- This personalized care approach, which takes into account the patient's genetic makeup, has the potential to vastly improve treatment outcomes for cancer patients.
- The implications of these findings for the field of oncology are significant, as they could revolutionize the way doctors select patients for immunotherapy and predict treatment outcomes.
