Cure Brain Cancer Foundation is excited to share an update from Dr. Misty Jenkins, Laboratory Head of the Immunology Division at The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI). Dr. Jenkin’s research is funded by the Foundation through a 2019 Innovation Grant, worth $200,000.
Dr. Jenkins and her team aim to improve the poor prognosis of brain cancer by creating a new cellular immunotherapy called Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cells, or CAR-T cells. Immunotherapy uses the patient’s own immune system to treat their own cancer. CAR-T cells are specialized white blood cells that can be genetically engineered to target cell surface proteins and specifically kill cancer cells, while leaving healthy neighbouring cells alone.
With the project coming to an end, Dr. Jenkins and her team have made great strides. By immediately collecting and processing glioblastoma tumours out of surgery, they were able to compile a list of proteins associated with these tumours. They are now in the process of making and testing CAR-T cells that recognise these proteins, with the goal of identifying which CAR-T cells make the most effective therapy for glioblastoma. This exciting development is hoped to progress to clinical trials.
“We are incredibly grateful to Cure Brain Cancer Foundation and to the donors that support this work. We are also grateful that Cure Brain Cancer Foundation also raises the profile of this devastating disease, and we look forward to an ongoing partnership. We are confident that we will be making a large contribution to the field and provide new therapeutic targets for brain cancer patients into the future.”
