Immunotherapy is a method of treating disease that makes use of a person’s own immune system. It is a very powerful technique in which there have been many recent advancements. The technique is different from others, in that it uses already existing aspects of our immune system to fight disease. One area where it is especially prominent is in cancer treatment. We discussed car T-cell therapy, which is being used to genetically engineer T-cells and fight cancer cells.

The potential of immunotherapy is limitless, and its is a very exciting new field! As Shiv explained, this is a relatively new technique in science and no one knows all that it could do. His enthusiasm inspired me to consider the importance of science and exploration. New techniques are being developed every day, and the field of biology and biomedical engineering allows us to harness the knowledge we have and make improvements that can save lives and improve the way people live. It is truly amazing!!

This past week I was able to join in on the conversation on immunotherapy. I found this conversation fascinating. Not only did I get a better idea of the concept itself but I found many different papers to read on my free time (perhaps this summer!). The actual science behind CAR-Ts and how the engineering of T cells to attack specific cancer cells was fascinating and I liked the fact that I actually understood most of what was being explained meaning that my education and overall increase in reading papers has allowed me to understand science well. It was also interesting to see why cancers like lymphoma, which are fluid cancers and make it easier to reach compared to more localized cancers, like breast cancer. I truly enjoyed this conversation and look forward to more like it.

This past Monday, I joined Shiv and other Rose Scholars to discuss the exciting new developments that are taking place in immunology, specifically in the field of cancer research. I have taken a microbiology class before, so I was familiar with a lot of the science but the new discoveries that are being made amazed me.

Even though these innovations for disease control and cures for various types of cancer are amazing, I was still saddened by the fact that so few people have access to the expensive treatments. When these treatments are in the trial phases they tend to be cheaper since companies want evidence that the treatments work, however once they are in action they become ridiculously expensive, upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Shiv made a really good point in saying it comes own to a choice between money and life. People can either risk it all on a treatment that may or may not work, or have to suffer until their final days.

Even though the science and brilliant new innovations are an awesome thing in the medical field, I hope more can be done to make these innovations accessible to those who need them. Otherwise, what’s the point?

Today, I attended a talk by GRF Shiv where he introduced us to the latest revolutionary developments immunology such as car-T therapy and checkpoint inhibitors to treat a plethora of diseases, especially cancer. I am amazed by the Nobel-prize winning work of discovering ways to deal with specific, conserved antigens that cancer cells (e.g. CTLA-4 and PD-1) exploit to stop their proliferation. The stark contrast in patients before and after such treatments is simply astounding.

Immunotherapies certainly seem to be an extremely hot topic for research, and Shiv’s contagious enthusiasm kept me intrigued throughout the talk. As he told us about the latest publications, it has only heightened my (already huge) interest in immunology. I am certain that immunotherapies will be the future of biomedical treatment.