The Basics of Cancer Immunotherapy
Adamnejad Ghafur, Uğur GezerCancer is an umbrella term for more than 100 different malignant diseases. Global burden of cancer remains high necessating more effective treatment modalities. Although the concept of cancer immunotherapy is a relatively old view, recent developments in this field in the past years have revolutionized cancer management. Compared to conventional cancer therapies such chemotherapy and radiotherapy, immunotherapy is a more dynamic treatment modality and comprises a broad and rapidly growing group of therapies and therapeutic agents. The strength of immunotherapy lies in its ability to activate the immune system to specifically target cancer cells with less side effects. Cellular therapies with modified/engineered T cells and the immune checkpoint blockade currently represent most emerging and promising treatment options. In this Chapter. we describe the basic concepts and principles of cancer immunotherapy with a spotlight on the immune checkpoint inhibition therapy.
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