In Immunotherapy, a certain part of the immune system of your body fights with cancer. It is done by two methods:
- Stimulates your immune system so that it works hard to kill the cancer cells.
- Providing components to your immune system like man-made immune system proteins.
Immunotherapy is one of the most important treatments of cancer. It includes treatments that work in different cases. Some increase the power of the immune system, others help train the immune system to attack cancer cells particularly.
What role plays an immune system?
Our immune system is a combination of multiple organs, cells, and some substances that helps in protection from infections and diseases. The cells and substances protect the body from germs and their infections. This system also helps in protecting us from cancer.
However, it is difficult for the immune system to fight cancer cells. Because cancer begins when there is an alteration of cells and growth is out of control. And the immune system doesn’t always consider the cancer cells foreign as they are not different enough from the normal cells.
Of course, the immune system has limited ability to fight with cancer, as persons with strong immune systems also develop cancer. However, even though the immune system recognizes the cancer cells, it is still not able to fight with it. In fact, cancer cells can give off substances that check the immune system.
Through immunotherapy, the immune system recognizes the cancer cells and increases its strength to fight with the cancer cells.
Types of Immunotherapy:
- Monoclonal Antibodies:
These are the human-made immune proteins. These antibodies a specific part of the cancer cell.
2. Immune checkpoint inhibitors:
These drugs “brakes” off the immune system, so it helps in recognizing and attack the cancer cells.
3. Cancer Vaccines:
Vaccines are given to the body which then starts an immune response against cancer.
Immunotherapy drugs are also available to treat many types of cancer. You can consult with Oncologist in Jaipur, Tara Chand about immunotherapy as a treatment for cancer.