Immunotherapy Cancer Treatments FAQ and Patient Stories

Immunotherapy Cancer Treatment FAQ and Patient
Stories

Your immune system fights infections and diseases in your body. Immunotherapy is a kind of biological therapy or treatment that uses your immune system to fight cancer.

Immunotherapy is still relatively new which makes its success a bit hard to predict. It’s also focused on some of the more common cancers.


Immunotherapy as cancer treatment

The immune system is what finds and destroys abnormal cells, oftentimes responsible for preventing cancer or stopping its growth.

One such example are tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, or TILs, which are immune cells that are sometimes found in or near tumors. If patients have tumors with TILs, they tend to have better results than those who don’t.

Immunotherapy as a cancer therapy helps use the immune system to target and destroy cancer cells.

Types of immunotherapy

There are a few main kinds of immunotherapy used as cancer treatment, including:

  • T-cell transfer therapy
    This kind of treatment increases the ability of T cells to act against cancer. The process requires immune cells to be taken from the patient. Those cells are studied in a lab where the most active immune cells are chosen, grown, and then sent back to be put into the patient through an IV. CAR T-Cell therapy is one of the most well-known.
  • Immune checkpoint inhibitors
    These drugs block immune checkpoints, which are a part of the immune system. The immune checkpoints ensure immune responses are within normal range. By blocking these checkpoints, the immune cells are able to react more strongly to cancer cells.
  • Immune system modulators
    These modulators increase the immune system’s response to and against cancer. Some of them target specific areas of the immune system, some more generally.
  • Monoclonal antibodies
    These antibodies are lab-created proteins that are formulated to bind to cancer cells. These are also referred to as therapeutic antibodies.
  • Treatment vaccines
    This is not the same type of vaccine used to prevent diseases. This is a type of immunotherapy that acts against cancer by increasing the immune system’s response to cancer.

Common cancers treated with immunotherapy

This type of cancer treatment is less common compared to chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. Some of the more commonly treated cancers using immunotherapy include:

Immunotherapy side effects

As with all cancer treatments, the side effects vary depending on the patient. No two people will track exactly the same. Factors that may contribute to what side effects a patient feels include:

  • State of health before treatment
  • Cancer type
  • Cancer stage
  • Immunotherapy type
  • Dosage

There are some side effects that are more commonly experienced, regardless of the immunotherapy type:

  • Skin reaction at needle site
    • May include pain, soreness, swelling, itchiness, rash, and redness
  • Flu-like symptoms
    • May include chills, fever, headache, problems breathing, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, muscle/joint aches, fatigue, weakness, low/high blood pressure
  • Diarrhea
  • Sinus congestion
  • Swelling, weight gain (as a result of fluid retention)
  • Heart palpitations
  • Higher risk of infection

There are side effects more associated with type of immunotherapy. For a more comprehensive list, visit the National Cancer Institute page on immunotherapy side effects.

Ways immunotherapy is given

  • Intravenous (IV)
    The immunotherapy goes directly into a vein.
  • Oral
    The immunotherapy comes in pills or capsules that you swallow.
  • Topical
    The immunotherapy comes in a cream that you rub onto your skin. This type of immunotherapy can be used for very early skin cancer.
  • Intravesical
    The immunotherapy goes directly into the bladder.

Immunotherapy patient stories and experiences

Car T-Cell Therapy


William Y., Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL)



1st symptoms: Extreme fatigue, achey hands
Treatment: Chemotherapy, CAR T-Cell therapy
...

Jacqueline Barrientos, MD



Role: Hematologist, researcher
Focus: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), lymphoma, 17p Deletion (Ibrutinib, Acalabrutinib, Venetoclax), IgHV mutation
Provider: Northwell Health (NYC)
...

Tim Fenske, MD, MS



Role: Hematologist-Oncologist
Focus: chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) & leukemia and lymphoma | CAR T, targeted therapy
Provider: Medical College of Wisconsin
...

Shahzad B., Refractory Diffuse Large B-Cell (DLBCL), Stage 4



1st Symptoms: Extreme fatigue
Treatment: R&B, R-ICE, R-EPOCH, CAR T-cell therapy (cell-based gene therapy)
FDA approved: October 2017
...

Sonia S., Primary Mediastinal (PMBCL), Relapse, CAR T-Cell Therapy



1st Symptoms: Chest pain, superior vena cava syndrome (SVCS); persistent, dry coughs, headaches
Treatment: (1st Line) R-CHOP chemotherapy, 6 cycles (2nd Line) R-ICE Chemotherapy (3rd Line) CAR T-cell therapy
...
Robyn S. profile

Robyn S., Relapsed Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL), Stage 2E



Symptoms: Enlarged lymph nodes
Treatments: Chemotherapy: R-CHOP, R-ICE, intrathecal, BEAM; autologous stem cell transplant, head and neck radiation, CAR T-cell therapy
...
Sammie shares her non-hodgkin's lymphoma story
Sammie F., Diffuse Large B-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (DLBCL) Cancer Diagnosis: Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL)Symptoms: Chest pain, back pain, bump on neck, night sweats Treatment: Chemotherapy, CAR T-Cell therapy...
Laura E. feature profile

Laura E.



Symptom: Increasing back pain
Treatments: Chemotherapy, stem cell transplant, bispecific antibodies
...

Keytruda (pembrolizumab)

Dania M.

Dania M., Colon Cancer, Stage 4, with Liver and Peritoneal Carcinomatosis



Symptoms: Constipation, diarrhea, terrible bloating, swollen belly, as if pregnant
Treatment: Surgery, immunotherapy (KEYTRUDA)
...
Laura E. feature profile

Laura E.



Symptom: Increasing back pain
Treatments: Chemotherapy, stem cell transplant, bispecific antibodies
...
Amy G.

Amy G., Non-Small Cell Squamous, MET, Stage 4



1st symptoms: Lump in neck, fatigued
Treatment: Pembrolizumab (Keytruda), SBRT, cryoablation, Crizotinib (Xalkori)
...
Jennifer P. feature

Jennifer Petersen, Neuroendocrine Tumor, Stage IV



Cancer details: Unknown site of origin, metastasis
1st Symptoms: Pain in upper back
Treatment: Chemotherapy, immunotherapy
...

References:

  • cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/types/immunotherapy
  • https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/types/immunotherapy/side-effects
  • https://health.clevelandclinic.org/immunotherapy-is-it-right-for-your-cancer-type/