Cellular and Immunotherapy for Pediatric Brain Tumors: A Primer

Abstract

Simple Summary Brain tumors are the most common solid cancer in children and the leading cause of childhood cancer deaths. While these tumors are difficult to treat, immunotherapy—a treatment that helps the body’s own immune system fight cancer—is showing great promise for young patients. The three main modalities of immunotherapy that will be discussed in this review include (a) CAR T cells: Doctors re-engineer a patient’s own immune cells in a lab to find and destroy cancer cells. (b) Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: These drugs take the “brakes” off the immune system so it can see and attack hidden cancer and (c) Oncolytic Viral Therapy: Scientists use safe, modified viruses to infect and kill cancer cells directly while waking up the immune system. In short, this review highlights how medical experts are successfully using these three innovative, immune-boosting therapies to target and destroy pediatric brain tumors more effectively.