Cancer is a pervasive problem in society, with over 600,000 people dying from the disease in the United States alone last year. Researchers are constantly seeking new ways to treat cancer more effectively and less invasively, with immunotherapy emerging as a promising solution. This approach involves harnessing the body’s immune system to target and destroy cancer cells. College of Engineering researchers, including Rong Tong and Wenjun “Rebecca” Cai, have developed a groundbreaking immunotherapy treatment that involves activating and reprogramming immune cells to attack cancer cells using potent proteins called cytokines.
Cytokines are highly effective in stimulating the immune system to eliminate cancer cells, but their potency can also lead to potentially fatal side effects if they are not localized within tumors. Tong and Cai, along with their team of graduate students, have devised a method to ensure that cytokines remain within tumors for extended periods, thus enhancing their ability to eradicate cancer cells while minimizing harm to healthy cells. By developing specialized particles with unique sizes and surface properties, the researchers are able to precisely deliver cytokines to tumors, jump-starting immune cells without overstimulating healthy cells.
The ultimate goal of the research team is to strike a balance between killing cancer cells and sparing healthy cells in cancer treatment. By anchoring cytokines to microparticles designed by the chemical engineering team and measuring the particles’ surface properties, the researchers have aimed to achieve controlled drug delivery that prolongs the presence of cytokines within tumors. This approach, which also involves combining the new therapy method with checkpoint blockade antibodies, has demonstrated promising results in eliminating tumors while reactivating immune cells that have been silenced by cancer cells.
The innovative approach developed by Tong, Cai, and their team aims to revolutionize cancer treatment by focusing on immunotherapy methods that are safe for healthy cells. By attaching cytokines to particles, the researchers have opened up possibilities for delivering other immunostimulatory drugs in the future. This approach could potentially enhance the effectiveness of existing FDA-approved therapeutics while ensuring both safety and improved efficacy in cancer treatment. Collaborations across multiple engineering disciplines, such as chemical engineering and materials science, are crucial in advancing cancer treatment research and developing transformative solutions for patients battling the disease.
