Scientists from Mayo Clinic have shined a light on an undetected “way lung tumors weaken the immune system,” clarifying why immunotherapy doesn’t work on certain patients, according to an announcement.
The research centers on regulatory T cells. Specifically, how they can be redirected to “protect the tumor instead of the body” in lung cancer. While assessing non-small cell lung cancer patient records, the scientists uncovered that “regulatory T cells inside lung tumors expressed high levels of P2RX7, and higher P2RX7 expression was linked to worse survival outcomes.”
Furthermore, eliminating P2RX7 from regulatory T cells delayed tumor progression “because the immune system was less suppressed.” This allowed immune cells to attack cancer efficiently. Omitting P2RX7 also caused regulatory cells to stop “shutting down immune activity inside lung tumors” and “helped immune cells work more closely with B cells.” This new approach could improve patient outcomes.
