Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TIL): 6 Questions You Need to Know

preface

Adoptive cell therapy is an immunotherapy that refers to the isolation of immunely active cells (e.

In recent years, with the approval of chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) immunotherapy for clinical use, significant efficacy has been achieved in the treatment of acute leukemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and is considered to be one

1

QUESTION

What are tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes?

Immune cells, or white blood cells, are an important part of the immune system that helps the body fight infection or eliminate diseased cells

When lymphocytes find cancer cells, they detect and distinguish normal cells from cancer cells by secreting toxins attached to them

Sometimes, the immune system's built-in "brakes" or signals from tumors weaken the immune response, preventing them from doing so and causing tumor cells to escape

In addition, by making some modifications to the TILs themselves, we can also use them as a cellular immunotherapy

2

QUESTION

How do TILs treat cancer?

Since TILs are directly derived from tumors and can directly recognize many specific antigens on cancer cells, we no longer need to think of ways to target them to tumors, so TILs therapy naturally has therapeutic advantages

In order to successfully apply TILs, barriers in the tumor microenvironment must be overcome to effectively eliminate cancer
.

Mainly in two ways: 1.
Amplify TILs; 2.
Modify TILs
with specific attribute designs.

By amplifying TILs, patients can be provided with a larger army of immune cells that have been trained to recognize and attack specific tumors
in the patient's body.

By modifying TILs, their ability to fight cancer cells can be enhanced
.

3

QUESTION

What is the treatment flow of TILs?

Currently, TILs therapy is a one-time treatment and is still in clinical trials
.

The treatment process is as follows:

• Tumor biopsy
  .
  
  

• Isolation
  of TILs in tumor tissue in the laboratory.
  
  

• Amplification and modification of TILs (this process usually takes about a month, but with the advancement of technology, the future time is expected to be greatly shortened
  ).
  
  

• After THE TILs are prepared, the subjects receive a short-term chemotherapy regimen
  .
  
  

• TILs are
  infused.
  
  After successful infusion, TILs reach the tumor directly and begin to work
  .
  
  

• Subjects need to undergo some immunomodulatory therapy, such as interleukin 2 (IL-2), to stimulate TILs activity
  .
  
  

• Hospitalized for observation, monitoring of treatment adverse effects
  .
  
  

4

QUESTION

Are there any adverse effects on TILs treatment?

No serious adverse reactions have been found in the TILs themselves
.

Most of the known adverse effects are mainly from chemotherapy or IL-2 and are manageable
.

TILs that can produce autoimmune stimulus signals are being developed so that patients no longer need to be treated with IL-2, which can reduce adverse reactions
.

5

QUESTION

Can TILs therapy be successful in treating cancer?

TILs therapies have been evaluated in clinical studies for many years and positive results have been achieved in early studies
.

To date, most studies have focused on melanoma, which is also being explored
in other tumor species.

Interestingly, TILs appear to be a persistent therapy
.

There is already evidence that TILs can still be found "patrolling" in the body years after TILs infusion and can prevent tumor recurrence
.

Some patients are able to remain tumor-free
for many years after a single TIL infusion.

While this is only early data, we are working to understand the mechanism behind this in order to maximize the benefits
for all patients.

At the same time, the preparation process of TILs is still being improved, which is a major obstacle for us, and we hope to overcome this challenge
in the near future.

6

QUESTION

Why is TILs therapy expected in the future?

TILs therapies offer an ideal treatment option for patients with solid tumors
.

So far, CAR-T or other cell therapies have had limited breakthroughs in solid tumors
.

However, based on the unique advantages of TILs, years of research data suggest that they are more effective
against solid tumors.

TILs therapy has been awarded the title
of Breakthrough Therapy by the FDA for both melanoma and cervical cancer.

TILs therapy is expected to become another sword to overcome solid tumors, exerting a major impact in the field of cell therapy and bringing new hope
to cancer patients.

References:

CLAYTON BOLDT.
TIL therapy: 6 things to know.
MD Anderson online.

Editing/Typography: Jiang Zhou

Execution: Uni