New Hope for Head and Neck Cancer as Scientists Uncover How Tumors Evade the Immune System
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Mar 17, 2025 3 hours, 16 minutes ago
Medical News: Head and neck cancer is a serious disease that affects thousands of people worldwide every year. It can develop in various parts of the throat, mouth, and voice box, often making treatment challenging. Scientists have long known that these tumors have a way of hiding from the immune system, allowing them to grow and spread. However, a new study from researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center in California has uncovered a key factor that helps these cancers escape detection by the body’s natural defenses.
New Hope for Head and Neck Cancer as Scientists Uncover How Tumors Evade the Immune System
The Role of Axl in Cancer Growth
The study focused on a protein called Axl, which is found on the surface of tumor cells. Axl has been linked to cancer growth and resistance to treatment, but this
Medical News report reveals that it also plays a major role in weakening the body’s immune response. Scientists discovered that Axl interferes with natural killer (NK) cells - special immune cells designed to seek out and destroy cancer.
Using advanced laboratory techniques, the researchers created cancer cells that lacked Axl and studied how these tumors behaved in mice. What they found was remarkable. Tumors without Axl grew much more slowly than normal tumors, and they were surrounded by a stronger immune response.
How Axl Weakens the Immune System
The study uncovered several ways in which Axl helps tumors avoid the immune system. Normally, NK cells are attracted to tumors by chemical signals, but the presence of Axl reduces the production of these signals. This makes it harder for NK cells to find and attack cancer cells. Additionally, Axl increases the levels of substances that suppress the immune system, creating an environment where cancer can thrive.
One key discovery was that tumors with Axl had higher levels of a molecule called CD73, which produces a chemical that weakens immune cells. When Axl was removed, levels of CD73 dropped, making the immune system more effective at attacking cancer.
A Breakthrough for Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy, which uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer, has been a game-changer for many types of cancer. However, head and neck cancers have been difficult to treat with these methods because they are often resistant to immune attacks. The findings of this study suggest that blocking Axl could help turn these resistant tumors into ones that respond better to immunotherapy.
In further experiments, the scientists used antibodies to remove NK cells from mice, and they found that the tumors started growing quickly again. This confirmed that NK cells play a crucial role in controlling cancer when Axl is blocked.
What This Means for Cancer Treatment
The discovery that Axl helps tumors hide from the immune system is an important step forward in the fight aga
inst head and neck cancer. By developing drugs that block Axl, researchers may be able to enhance existing cancer treatments and improve survival rates for patients with this disease.
Dr. Deric Wheeler, one of the study’s senior researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, explained that their findings highlight the importance of understanding how tumors interact with the immune system. “By targeting Axl, we can potentially make immunotherapy more effective and give patients better treatment options,” he said.
Conclusion
This study provides strong evidence that Axl plays a key role in helping head and neck tumors avoid immune attacks. Blocking this protein could be a new strategy for making immunotherapy work better for patients with these cancers. Scientists now hope to develop drugs that specifically target Axl, paving the way for new treatments that could save lives.
The study findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal: Cancers.
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/17/6/994
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