IMMUNOTHERAPY IN ONCOLOGY

Lymphoma is a disorder of the patient’s lymphatic system. This pathology destroys the immune system and specifically the lymphocytes. It develops in the blood. Depending on the time of onset of symptoms, the degree of lymphatic system deficit and the rate of tumor cell multiplication, the disease is spreading early or not. The capacity to increase, proliferate and spread therefore defines the aggressiveness of lymphoma.

Several types of lymphoma exist:
– Hodgkin’s lymphoma which has a high proportion of atypical cells, Reed-Sternberg cells.
– Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and indolent lymphoma: it may be of low or high malignancy.
– Atypical lymphoma
Lymphoma can spread to the organs of the lymphatic system: bone marrow, spleen, thymus, lymph nodes (or lymph nodes) and lymphatic vessels.
In order to detect this disease, medical imaging is often used, such as ultrasound and CT scan. A biopsy sample can also be used to define lymphoma grade.

Lymphomas are classified as T lymphoma (T lymphocyte involvement), B lymphoma (B lymphocyte involvement). For example, they can be localized in the stomach (gastric lymphoma) or in the skin (cutaneous lymphoma).

Lymphoma is a multifactorial disease, with high significance of environmental factors. Following the onset of the disease, fighting it is essential. The fight against lymphoma is logically based on a multimodal approach to treatments. The goal of cancer treatment is to destroy tumor cells. Different types of treatment such as irradiation (radiotherapy) or drug-based chemotherapy rituximab / truxomab (monoclonal antibodies attacking B lymphocytes) are therapies that decrease the recurrence rate, with more or less important side effects. Weight loss is the most common side effect. A bone marrow transplant is sometimes necessary.

To care for patients, new therapies are being developed and many clinical trials are trying to demonstrate their effectiveness.
Once detected and diagnosed, the lymphoma is evaluated regularly, to follow its evolution, its prognosis is then established.
To find more details, patient associations have been formed and allow the sharing of testimony. A global day for the fight against lymphoma is also organized. You can follow this link of France Lymphoma Espoir for more details: http://www.francelymphomeespoir.fr/
The WHO (World Health Organization) website can also provide information on this disease: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs297/en/

Early cancer screening allows effective treatments to be implemented prior to the spread of tumor cells in the body (cancer metastasis). Mammography has made great progress in detecting the first signs of breast cancer. And thanks to events like October Rose, these screenings are better and better followed. For more information: http://www.cancerdusein.org/
Radiation therapy (irradiation) is part of cancer treatment, as is surgery (tumor removal), chemotherapy (cytotoxic molecules such as cisplatin, carboplatin, methotrexate) and immunotherapy. They increase the survival of patients and limit invasion of the tumor.

Recurrences are then less numerous. Side effects are increasingly controlled by decreasing doses (and therefore toxicity) and by combining adjuvant therapy such as immunotherapy. The therapeutic protocol prescribed by the oncologist aims to attack, slow down or even stop the evolution of tumor cells.

Immunotherapy relies on the immune system to detect and eliminate tumor cells. For example, monoclonal antibodies make it possible to limit or even prevent the multiplication of tumor cells and to regenerate normal tissue.
These treatments can be offered as part of palliative treatments to relieve patients or for curative purposes to achieve cancer remission.
Cancer research helps to clarify the pathophysiology of cancer. The many differences between types of cancer make it a complex disease to understand and therefore to diagnose and treat. The tumor cells are indeed very different from the normal cells of the organism since they have undergone numerous mutations in the genes and have a modified cell cycle. Genetic predispositions were thus highlighted by the researchers.
Foundations such as the ARC http://www.fondation-arc.org/ help researchers better understand this disease.

In oncology, the validation of new treatments requires the setting up of clinical trials on the different types of cancer, for very precise indications. The tolerance of the molecules must be demonstrated. An improvement in clinical signs, relief of patients and an increase in survival must be obtained. Assessments of new molecules are always conducted in order to improve the quality of life and increase the life expectancy of patients.
In terms of prognosis, a biopsy is often requested by the oncologist. The definition of the type of cancer and its stage also follows medical imaging such as radiography, ultrasound or scintigraphy. This results in a TNM classification of cancer. Follow this link for definitions of this classification: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TNM_staging_system
The evolution of cancers in France, their prevalence and follow-up is also the subject of numerous studies. You will find here more details: http://www.unicancer.fr/le-groupe-unicancer/les-chiffres-cles/les-chiffres-du-cancer-en-france
Hospitals such as the Institute Curie have specialized in therapeutics against cancers. Follow this link for more details: https://curie.fr/ Institute Gustave Roussy is the first European center for cancer care https://www.gustaveroussy.fr/
In France, the Cancer Plan 2014-2019 is a national plan that seeks to meet the expectations of patients and their families, both through research and prevention, and therefore publishes recommendations. Follow this link for more details: http://www.e-cancer.fr/Plan-cancer/Plan-cancer-2014-2019-priorites-et-objectifs