Creating a tumour-seeking targeted treatment for prostate cancer

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What you need to know

Researchers hope to create a ‘smart’ drug delivery system using modified immune cells to attack prostate cancer cells.
They will investigate the effects of this therapy in mice and human cells.
The goal is to create a safer and more effective way to treat prostate cancer.

Dr Jun Ishihara, Imperial College London

What will Dr Ishihara and his team do?

Dr Ishihara and his team aim to develop a next-generation treatment that uses modified immune cells, called CAR-T cells, to attack prostate cancer cells.

These immune cells will be designed to look for and attach to a protein found in high levels in prostate cancer cells. When the CAR-T cells attach themselves to this protein, they will activate and release a drug that will help kill the cancer cells.

To make the CAR-T cells even more effective, the researchers will also design them to attach to a protein called collagen, found in the area surrounding prostate cancer cells. This will help the CAR-T cells stay in the area around the cancer cells and continue attacking them.

The researchers will test the safety and effectiveness of these modified CAR-T cells in mice and on human cells in the laboratory.

They will also study how the immune system responds to the CAR-T cells to understand how the treatment is working and whether it could reduce the risk of the cancer coming back in men who are treated with it.

How will this benefit men?

If successful, this research has the potential to offer a new and more targeted way to treat prostate cancer that could be more effective and last longer than existing treatments.

By using modified immune cells to deliver drugs directly to the cancer cells, the researchers hope to minimise the risk of harming healthy cells – reducing the side effects experienced by men taking the treatment – and to maximise the treatment's effectiveness.

If successful, this approach could also create long-lasting immunity against prostate cancer, which could help prevent the cancer from returning after treatment.