Cancer is a word that makes the blood run cold. There are over 100 different varieties of cancer, and while some have a higher rate of survivability than others, no type of cancer is worry-free. But, what if there was a future to look forward to where cancer wasn’t such a thing to fear? What if cancer treatment did not involve agonizing months or years of chemo? With the help of a new immune cell discovery, that day may be closer than you think. (1)
T-Cell Cancer Targeting
The name of their paper may be a mouthful–”Genome-wide CRISPR–Cas9 screening reveals ubiquitous T Cell cancer targeting via the monomorphic MHC class I-related protein MR1”–but the ideas within it are more exciting than they are confusing when all is said and done. A team of scientists at Cardiff University were examining the body’s natural defenses against tumors. They found a T-Cell and receptor that aided in that. Professor Andrew Sewell, one of the researchers behind this discovery, says it is “a single type of T-cell that could be capable of destroying many different types of cancers across the population,” what might be described as “a ‘one-size-fits-all’ cancer treatment.” (2, 3)
What Is A T-Cell?
In case you aren’t already familiar with them, a T-Cell is a type of white blood cell that is part of the body’s immune system and fights off infections. According to the National Cancer Institute,
Cancer cells are also often able to evade the immune system, a network of organs, tissues, and specialized cells that protects the body from infections and other conditions. Although the immune system normally removes damaged or abnormal cells from the body, some cancer cells are able to “hide” from the immune system.
Since tumors are the body’s own cells that multiply out of control, often T-Cells are “part” of a tumor. The Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research explains it like this:
Tregs [regulatory T-Cells] play a critical role in healthy tissues, where they prevent autoimmune disease and aid wound-healing. But, when recruited into tumors, Tregs also thwart anti-cancer immune responses — and immunotherapy.
(1, 4, 5)
What Does This T-Cell Discovery Mean?
The T-Cell receptor is being alerted, somehow, by a molecule called MR1 to the abnormal mutations of a cancerous cell–which means it’s leaving healthy cells with normal growth rates alone. If ‘somehow’ seems too vague of a way to describe this process, it’s because the process is the exciting part of this discovery. “We are the first to describe a T-cell that finds MR1 in cancer cells,” says researcher Garry Dolton. “That hasn’t been done before, this is the first of its kind.”
There have been other T-Cell approaches to cancer treatment, most notably CAR-T therapy. Unfortunately, the success levels vary wildly, and work best in blood cancers, rather than “solid” cancers. (2)
The End of Cancer?
It’s an exciting thought–but not reality, not quite. University of Manchester Immunology professor, Daniel Davis cautions it’s “not close to actual medicines for patients.”
However, he did say that “it’s a very exciting discovery.” (2)
One of the best things you can do when you have an autoimmune disease, or any disease for that matter is fortify your immune system.
As someone who lives with MS, I have to be extra careful right now and that includes ensuring that my immune system is fortified.
My protocol includes daily Vitamin C, Vitamin D3+K2 all fortified with Magnesium along with tons of fruits and vegetables. I also take a probiotic daily.
The world is changing fast and now more than ever we all need to focus on immune health through proper diet, exercise, stress management, and supplementation.
