How is gene therapy being studied in the treatment of cancer?
Researchers are studying several ways to treat cancer using gene therapy. Some approaches target healthy cells to enhance their ability to fight cancer. Other approaches target cancer cells, to destroy them or prevent their growth. Some gene therapy techniques under study are described below. • In one approach, researchers replace missing or altered genes with healthy genes. Because some missing or altered genes (e.g., p53) may cause cancer, substituting “working” copies of these genes may be used to treat cancer. • Researchers are also studying ways to improve a patient’s immune response to cancer. In this approach, gene therapy is used to stimulate the body’s natural ability to attack cancer cells. In one method under investigation, researchers take a small blood sample from a patient and insert genes that will cause each cell to produce a protein called a T-cell receptor (TCR). The genes are transferred into the patient’s white blood cells (called T lymphocytes) and are then given b
