Scientists discover immune cells that 'hunt down' cancer in the body

Scientists have made a discovery that could help bring about new treatments for advanced breast cancer.

Immunotherapy uses someone’s own immune system to fight cancer, and works by helping it recognise and attack cancer cells. Top Health Stories Today “Our research has revealed that the immune response to cancer isn’t limited to the site where a tumour initially appears – if an immune B cell is successful at detecting cancer in one part of the body, it will search for similar cancer cells elsewhere in the body.”

Scientists at the ICR, the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge, took biopsies from patients with breast cancer and identified genetic variations in the B cells. B cells are part of the immune system and produce proteins called antibodies which stick to harmful substances such as viruses and cancer, and recruit other parts of the immune system to destroy them.

The team studied the B cells of people with advanced breast cancer who had died, after their cancer had spread to other parts of the body. They also looked at a group of patients with early breast cancer, as they were treated with chemotherapy over time.

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