A new approach to ovarian cancer immunotherapy using mast cell-mediated delivery

Dr Jean Marshall is developing a new form of immunotherapy that targets ovarian cancer. Often diagnosed after spreading, ovarian cancer is difficult to treat and has a 5-year survival rate of less than 50%. With funding from an Atlantic Canada Research Grant, Dr Marshall and her team are developing an immunotherapy treatment based on mast cells, a type of immune cell that populates the abdominal area where ovarian cancer often starts to spread. The researchers will genetically modify these cells to enhance their immune response to ovarian cancer. The modified mast cells will naturally cluster near ovarian cancer cells, creating a potentially effective therapy for ovarian cancer. Although still at an early stage, this treatment has already shown great promise to improve survival from ovarian cancer. Dr Marshall’s work could also improve the effectiveness of immunotherapy for other cancers within the mast-cell rich abdomen.