Numerous treatment methods can help in treating, remitting, and eliminating cancer. Some of these methods like chemotherapy and radiation are widely popular and can help many patients. However, these treatment methods can have numerous side effects, including having an adverse impact on the immune system.

Our body’s immune system is a natural defense mechanism that protects us from various diseases. It is made up of organs, tissues, and lymph system that keeps us safe and healthy. It keeps an inventory of the cells in the body and attacks any foreign microorganisms.

However, despite the efficiency of our immune system, our body can get impacted by cancer. Immunotherapy can be a powerful aid in the battle against different types of cancer. It is a biological therapy that uses substances derived from living organisms to fight diseases. It harnesses the power of our body’s immune system to treat cancer.

Let us learn how it is effective against different types of cancers.

• What is Immunotherapy cancer treatment?

Immunotherapy involves collecting the immune cells of an individual while they are young and healthy. The cells are cryogenically-preserved for future usage.

Cancer patients face the issue of a weakened immune system. An infusion of the preserved cells can provide a boost to the immune system and help in preventing, treating, controlling, and eliminating cancer.

Numerous immunotherapy drugs have received approval for being used as cancer treatments. Numerous researchers are finding more such drugs for fighting deadly diseases.

• How immune therapy helps in the treatment of cancer?

Our immune system detects and destroys various microorganisms and foreign particles entering our bodies every day. It is most likely that it prevents the growth of many cancers. However, sometimes our immune system may fail to identify these cells.

This happens because cancers cells originate as normal cells in the body. Hence, our immune system does not recognize them as foreign cells. Also, these cells can have protein on their surface that can deactivate the immune cells and prevent them from attacking cancer.

They can have a genetic modification that makes them less identifiable to the immune system. They can also alter the normal cells around the tumor and impact the immune response of the body.

Immunotherapy for cancer treatment

Immunotherapy helps the immune system to better act against cancer.

Immunotherapy helps the body’s immune cells to identify and attack cancer cells and helps in the fight against cancer.

Also, an infusion of immune cells can provide a boost to the weakened immune system. Some cancers can be resistant to therapies like chemotherapy and radiation. Immunotherapy in such a case can be an effective treatment alternative. For example, immunotherapy can be helpful in the case of melanoma which is a form of skin cancer.

The treatment can also be used in conjunction with other treatment methods and aid in the fight against cancer. Immunotherapy can strengthen the immune cell’s response to cancer cells by training them to remember cancer cells. This can reduce the chances of cancer impacting a person in the future. Hence it helps in long-lasting remissions.

The benefits of immunotherapy cancer treatment are prolonged and can continue even after the completion of the treatment. Immunotherapy does not create many side effects, as compared to other treatment methods like chemotherapy and radiation.

The treatment is focused on the natural immune response but the side effects can result from overstimulation or misdirection of the immune system.

• Which type of cancers can be treated with immunotherapy?

Immunotherapy can help in the treatment of different types of cancer. Some of them are mentioned below:

• Leukemia

• Cervical cancer

• Breast cancer

• Head and neck cancer

• Brain cancer

• Prostate cancer

• Skin cancer lymphoma

• Bladder cancer

• Colon cancer, etc.

Also, it can be effectively used when other treatment methods like chemotherapy and radiation do not bring the desired result.

Immunotherapy can be an effective treatment method against cancer. However, the effect of immunotherapy for each person is different and is dependent on factors like the type of cancer, the stage it is detected, etc. Hence, it is advisable to consult your health care provider before you chose immunotherapy cancer treatment.