De-TOXing exhausted T cells may bolster CAR T immunotherapy against solid tumors

(La Jolla Institute for Immunology) A decade ago researchers announced development of a cancer immunotherapy called CAR (for chimeric antigen receptor)-T, in which a patient is re-infused with their own genetically modified T cells equipped to mount a potent anti-tumor attack. Since then CAR T approaches (one of several strategies collectively known as 'adoptive T cell transfer') have made headlines as a novel cellular immunotherapy tool, most successfully against so-called 'liquid cancers' like...