Advancements and Challenges in Lung Cancer Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a promising new approach to treating cancer that is changing the strategy of cancer treatment. Immunotherapy is a type of medicine, administered intravenously, that treats cancer by using the body's own immune system to fight against the cancer. It does this by blocking the communication between the immune system and the tumor. This treatment has been found to be very effective in treating advanced lung cancer and is considered the most promising way to treat cancer with the least amount of side effects. However, it's important to know what some of the side effects are.

Although immunotherapy can have many benefits, some patients may experience negative effects on their immune system. These side effects can include symptoms similar to the flu, a rash on the skin, pain, swelling, heart palpitations, diarrhea, an overly active immune response, and damage to organs in the body. The most common side effect in the lungs is inflammation, but there are also cases of a syndrome where the immune system releases too many cytokines, or it results in the onset of diabetes in patients receiving certain types of immunotherapy. While most of these side effects are usually not too serious, in some cases they can be severe and require hospitalization.

In this still evolving field, combination immunotherapy may become the standard of care for lung cancer patients. This approach involves using multiple types of immunotherapies or combining immunotherapy with traditional treatments like chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Researchers are also exploring new ways to personalize immunotherapy treatments for each patient. By analyzing a patient's tumor and immune system, doctors may be able to predict which treatments will be most effective for that patient. In addition, researchers are developing new types of immunotherapies that target different parts of the immune system.This could potentially make immunotherapy even more effective in treating cancer. 

Immunotherapy such as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has become the backbone of treatment for most lung cancers with advanced or metastatic disease. In addition, they have increasingly been used for early stage tumors in neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings. However, only a subset of patients experiences meaningful response to ICIs, and biomarker testing is key to determining the efficacy of immunotherapy (read more about biomarker testing here). PD-L1 protein expression has emerged as a clinically useful biomarker for treatment decisions regarding immunotherapy. ThoraCore aims to provide adequate tissue for not only definitive diagnosis but also biomarker testing to enable access to patient-specific treatment pathways like immunotherapy. As research progresses in immunotherapy, more personalized and effective treatments for lung cancer and other cancers are becoming available. New technologies such as CAR T-cell therapy and gene editing, along with combining immunotherapy with chemotherapy and radiation therapy, could lead to improved outcomes for advanced lung cancer patients. Supportive policies and ongoing investment in research and development are required to ensure patient access to the latest treatments and technologies.

References:

1. Lahiri, Aritraa, et al. “Lung Cancer Immunotherapy: Progress, Pitfalls, and Promises - Molecular Cancer.” BioMed Central, 21 Feb. 2023, molecular-cancer.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12943-023-01740-y. 
2. Association, American Lung. “Lung Cancer Immunotherapy.” American Lung Association, www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/lung-cancer/treatment/types-of-treatment/immunotherapy#:~:text=Immunotherapy%20is%20a%20type%20of,recognize%20and%20kill%20cancer%20cells. Accessed 25 May 2023.