Changes in genes that control how our cells work, especially how they grow and divide, are what cause cancer, which is a genetic disease. There are many new treatments for cancer that are currently being developed and tested. These treatments are often more targeted and effective than traditional treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
One of the newer treatments for cancer is immunotherapy, which helps to boost the body's natural immune system to fight cancer cells. This type of treatment uses substances called immune checkpoint inhibitors, which block proteins in immune cells that cancer cells use to avoid detection. By blocking these proteins, the immune cells are able to recognize and attack the cancer cells.
Another newer treatment for cancer is targeted therapy, which uses drugs or other substances to specifically target the cancer cells and prevent them from growing and dividing. This type of treatment is often more effective and has fewer side effects than chemotherapy, which can affect healthy cells as well as cancer cells. Although targeted therapies are currently not available for all cancers, this field of study is expanding rapidly, and numerous new targeted therapies are currently being tested in clinical trials.
Another promising new treatment for cancer is gene therapy, which involves modifying the genes of cancer cells to make them more vulnerable to the body's natural immune system or to other cancer treatments. This type of treatment is still in the early stages of development, but it has shown promising results in clinical trials.
In 2021, researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center continued to make significant advances in cancer treatment. The very first clinical preliminary of another sort of medication for blood disease showed promising outcomes. People with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, small lymphocytic lymphoma, mantle cell lymphoma, and other types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma were given the drug, which is called LOXO-305, for testing.
Overall, there are many new treatments for cancer that are currently being developed and tested. These treatments are often more targeted and effective than traditional treatments, and they hold great promise for the future of cancer treatment.