Cancer tumors turn immune cells from fighters into feeders - study

Cancer tumors turn immune cells from fighters into feeders - study

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Immune cells that usually remove dead and damaged cells, can be reprogrammed after consuming dead cancer cells, switching from fighting tumours to fueling their growth.

Researchers have discovered how cancer tumours recruit the body's immune cells to help them grow, paving the way for new cancer treatments, Tel Aviv University said in a statement on Thursday.
The study, published in Science Immunology, showed how a normal immune process can be turned against the body inside a tumour.
The researchers found that macrophages, immune cells that usually remove dead and damaged cells, can be reprogrammed after consuming dead cancer cells, switching from fighting tumours to fueling their growth.
Using a real-time tracking technology, the researchers found the altered immune cells switched on genes that feed tumours by supplying them with oxygen and nutrients.
The team also analysed data from patients with uveal melanoma, a rare eye cancer. Patients whose tumours contained more of these reprogrammed immune cells were more likely to have poorer survival.
The researchers concluded that the findings could lead to new treatments that stop immune cells from helping tumours, effectively restoring their cancer-fighting role.

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