The immune system is the body's "first warrior" against cancer

　　The immune system is an important mechanism for the human body to resist foreign pathogens. It has the ability to identify enemies and friends， and will attack and destroy "invaders". However， since cancer cells are derived from the body's own cells， they are autologous cells and can escape the recognition of the immune system. When the immune system cannot catch cancerous cells， cancer cells will begin to proliferate， spread and metastasize to other parts of the body， expand the tumor， and become the cancer known to people. In severe cases， it will endanger life.

　　From the perspective of cancer immunology， cancer is caused by the low function of the human immune system， which is unable to detect and eliminate cells in the early stages of cancer， allowing them to develop into cancer tumors. At the same time， the cancer patient's own immunity will also affect the speed of cancer progression and the effect of treatment. Therefore， if the cancer patient's own immunity can be improved， it will be very helpful for the success of anti-cancer.

　　Innate immunity

　　Innate immunity refers to the first line of defense of the human body against foreign bodies. As long as abnormal cells are detected， they will be annihilated first， and then further detailed "investigation" will be conducted to find out what is abnormal about these cells. The innate immune system includes immune cells such as macrophages， natural killer cells (NK)， and dendritic cells (DC).

　　NK cells can come into contact with cancer cells and cause the cell membrane of cancer cells to rupture and die; at the same time， NK cells will also secrete tumor necrosis factor to destroy target cancer cells.

　　DC cells are named because their appearance is similar to the dendrite structure of nerve cells. DC cells are the most powerful antigen presenting cells in the immune system. They can present cancer antigens on the surface of cancer cells to the immune system， thereby activating the immune system to launch an attack. In addition， the ability of DC cells to regulate immune responses is very important for the body to resist cancer cells.

　　Acquired immunity (acquired immunity)

　　The acquired immune system does not react as fast as the innate immune system to foreign substances and abnormal cells. It needs to be brewed in the body for a period of time before it reacts and takes effect. This is because the acquired immune system needs to integrate the cancer cell antigens provided by DC cells before launching a planned attack. Among them， B cells and T cells are important components of the acquired immune system.

　　Why are traditional cancer therapies ineffective and the treatment process painful？

　　Cancer cells are usually divided into two types—"cancer cells that express cancer cell antigens" and "cancer cells that do not express cancer cell antigens". These two types of cancer cells exist at the same time.

　　However, traditional cancer immunotherapy can only use one of them as a target cell, which makes it easy for cancer cells to escape the surveillance of the immune system and proliferate rapidly, leading to cancer recurrence and metastasis.

　　In the past， the biggest problems in cancer treatment were spread， recurrence， and metastasis.

　　In order to overcome these problems， the third-generation super immunotherapy "iNKT cell therapy" based on a new concept came into being！

　　What is iNKT cell？

　　iNKT cells (Invariant natural killer T cells) are a type of immune cell that was discovered in 1986 by researchers including Taniguchi Katsu (currently a National Research and Development Corporation， special advisor to the RIKEN Center for Integrated Medical Sciences) and became the fourth type of lymphocyte after T cells， B cells， and NK cells.

　　iNKT cells are the only immune cells that can activate the natural immune system NK cells and the acquired immune system helper T cells， killer T cells， and γδ T cells through the adjuvant effect of gamma interferon.

　　iNKT cancer therapy is a treatment method that processes the patient's peripheral blood cells and injects the generated "customized cancer vaccine" into the patient's body to activate the patient's iNKT cells， thereby preventing cancer spread， recurrence， and metastasis.

　　Since it uses the body's own immune system to fight cancer or even eliminate cancer， compared with traditional cancer therapies， iNKT cancer therapy not only has better treatment effects， but also fewer side effects. It has benefited countless cancer patients so far！

　　Five major features of iNKT cancer therapy

　　1. Effective for any cancer

　　NKT cancer therapy is not a treatment method that uses cancer cells themselves as target cells， but uses adjuvants to activate immune cell groups that already exist in the patient's body but are weakened by cancer. It is a treatment method that is effective for "any cancer".

　　2. Can form long-term immune memory

　　The anti-tumor effect of iNKT cells is strongly exerted under the action of adjuvants that activate other immune cells. Some of the activated immune cells remain in the body to form long-term immune memory.

　　3. Can kill 2 types of cancer cells at the same time

　　iNKT cancer therapy can kill "cancer cells expressing cancer cell antigens" and "cancer cells not expressing cancer cell antigens" at the same time with the help of adjuvants. It is a treatment method that can effectively inhibit the spread， recurrence and metastasis of cancer.

　　4. Breaking through HLA restrictions

　　The antigen receptors of iNKT cells are shared by all humans. The iNKT ligands that activate iNKT cells can bind to the unique CD1d molecules in the same biological species to activate iNKT cells. It is a "universal" effective therapy that is unrelated to the patient's HLA type.

　　5. The only immune cell that can promote the maturation of dendritic cells

　　iNKT cells are the only cells in the immune system that can react functionally with immature dendritic cells. Therefore， they can promote the maturation of dendritic cells suppressed by cancer， activate the immune system with incomplete immune function， and restore the patient's immunity to cancer.

　　iNKT cell therapy allows cancer patients to move from purgatory to spring

　　Today's cancer diagnosis and treatment has entered the era of immune cell therapy. Precision treatment， multidisciplinary collaborative integrated diagnosis and treatment， and the formulation of individualized diagnosis and treatment plans are the future development direction.