Researchers at the University of Turku, Finland, have taken a step towards more personalized and effective cancer treatments. A new study has identified the conditions under which the antibody drug bexmarilimab can activate the body's own defense system against cancer, and how to identify patients who will benefit from the drug.

A new study published in Nature Cancer reveals that age-related metabolic decline impairs the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy. Scientists at the University of Lausanne, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Lausanne branch, demonstrate that declining NAD levels in aged T cells reduce their mitochondrial function and tumor-killing ability. Replenishing NAD reverses this dysfunction, suggesting a new strategy to enhance cell therapies for older cancer patients.

University of Texas at Dallas bioengineers, in collaboration with UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers, are developing an enhanced light-activated immunotherapy approach that could one day treat patients with stomach cancer that has spread throughout the abdomen.

The approach uses lab-designed molecules and far-red or near-infrared light to “prime” the immune system to help it attack stubborn cancer cells, said Dr. Girgis Obaid, assistant professor of bioengineering in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.