The difference between immunotherapy and traditional cancer treatment

Alongside traditional cancer treatments like surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and targeted drugs, autologous immune cell therapy has emerged as a fifth option due to rapid medical advancements. Drug resistance to chemotherapy or targeted drugs can cause tumor regrowth, but immune cell therapy uses the patient’s own cells with fewer side effects and better quality of life. Thus, it has become a popular treatment option for cancer patients. The following are the current traditional treatment methods:

Type of treatment Cancer treatment methods and principles
Surgical therapy Surgical treatment involves removing tissue that has been invaded by cancer cells. It can only target the "local" area of the body, so cancers that can be surgically removed are often in the early stages and have not yet spread or metastasized.
Chemotherapy Chemotherapy is a cancer treatment that involves administering drugs through injection or oral intake to kill cancer cells or inhibit their growth. Chemotherapy is a "systemic" cancer treatment that can be used even if cancer cells have spread or metastasized. During chemotherapy, patients may experience side effects such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and hair loss.
Radiation Therapy Radiation therapy uses radiation to kill cancer cells in the affected area, and is suitable for cancers that are localized, at an early stage, and have not spread or metastasized. It is a "local" cancer treatment method, and is more effective when there are fewer cancer cells.
Targeted Therapy Targeted therapy is a treatment that targets the specific mechanisms of cancer cells' special expressions or metastasis. There are two types of treatments: oral and injection. It can precisely destroy cancer cell genes, effectively prevent cancer cell proliferation, differentiation, or metastasis.

Immune cells quality and safety of Immunotherapy

The process of cancer cell therapy involves cell handling, cultivation, or storage, and should be carried out in a cell preparation site that meets the Good Tissue Practices (GTP) regulations for human cell and tissue handling, and has been inspected and approved by regulatory authorities. On February 9, 2021, the Ministry of Health and Welfare revised the “Management Measures for the Implementation or Use of Specific Medical Technology Inspection and Examination Medical Devices,” also known as the “Special Management Measures,” which strictly regulate the requirements for immune cell technology vendors to comply with the “Good Tissue Practices (GTP)” regulations.

In immune cell therapy, the most important aspect is the quality and safety of the cells. LuJia has established a cell preparation site and quality control laboratory in Xizhi, and the entire cell cultivation process follows standard operating procedures to ensure the safety, stability, integrity, and efficacy of personnel, environment, and cell products.

Multi-Modality Treatment Collaborative attack on cancer cells

Increasingly, research has shown that traditional radiation and chemotherapy play important roles in the immune system. Combining cell therapy with traditional treatment can “attack together” and help improve cancer treatment effectiveness. After radiation and chemotherapy, cancer cells undergo apoptosis and release more tumor antigens during the breakdown process, which become important signals for immune cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells, making T cells more sensitive to detecting and killing cancer cells.

Multi-modality treatment is the main trend in the treatment of advanced cancer patients, especially for those in late-stage cancer. More testing methods will also gradually become more widespread, providing doctors with more information to plan cancer treatment for patients. In the future of cell therapy, it will be directed towards personalized treatment, identifying specific antigens based on tumor genes and using gene modification to enhance immune cell recognition and tumor-killing abilities. We believe that in the near future, cell therapy will become more diversified, providing doctors with more information and data to help each patient develop the most appropriate treatment plan.