Syllabus: GS III
Subject: Science & Technology
Topic: Medical science and Health
Issue: Cancer Treatment, CAR T-Cell Therapy.
Context: For the first time, a patient in India become free of cancer cells after being treated with CAR T-cell therapy.
Cancer Treatment in India:
- Cancer is a disease in which some of the body’s cells grow uncontrollably and spread to other parts of the body.
- In India, about 8 lakh people every year are dying because of cancer.
- Traditionally cancer treatments included chemotherapy, radiation and surgery.
CAR T-cell therapy (chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy):
- This therapy is customized for each patent.
- It involves extracting T cells (a type of immune system cell) from the patient and growing them in the laboratory.
- The T cells are armed against cancer via gene editing and infused back into the patient’s body.
Advantages:
- Easier for patients, when compared with chemotherapy and radiation etc.
- effective against relapse of cancer cells.
- Fortification of patient with living drug (modified T cell) to constantly fight cancer cells.
Concerns:
It is costly for a large section of population in India.
Need more research and development in the field.
Prelims Connect:
Genome editing: is a group of technologies using which the DNA of organisms (plants, bacteria, and animals etc.) is changed.
CRISPR-Cas9, TALE nucleases, and zinc-finger nucleases are some of Gene Editing technologies.
