According to a new study published in the journal Cancer Research, immunotherapy may not work for all cancer patients. In the study conducted by a group of doctors from the Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI), Kolkata, a new method called the immunodiagnostic method` was proposed to improve the success rate of immunotherapy.

In the study, titled "A new diagnostic approach to identify anti-PD1 therapy responder cancer patients", the researchers identified a very specific group of damaged immune cells, namely terminally exhausted CD8 T cells, or T-TEX cells, as responsible for the failure of the immunotherapy.

These T-TEX cells remain unresponsive to anti-PD1 treatment and promote cancer stem cells. These cells are heavily present in the tumors of advanced carcinoma patients, where overall immune infiltration is poor.

Hence, the team emphasized that before the administration of the expensive therapy, the patients needed to be screened for the percentage of T-TEX and immune infiltration. If a patient is found to have elevated T-TEX along with low immune infiltration, PD1 therapy will not work. This will help ensure that the right patients receive proper immunotherapy, as it is expensive and can also cause toxicity.

(Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/immunotherapy-may-not-work-for-all-cancer-patients-study-in-kolkata/articleshow/99365862.cms )