Immunotherapies: The Future of Medicine

As we gain a deeper understanding of the immune system's role in various conditions, including allergies, asthma, and cancer, new treatment possibilities are emerging. Immunotherapies in clinical use continue to provide valuable insights that can guide the development of the next generation of drugs, but to truly reach a new era of treatments, however, different sectors need to work together to learn more about the underlying science and to overcome the challenges. 

Immunotherapies target diseases by either activating or suppressing the immune system, and their development is a high-risk, high-reward endeavor. The personalized nature of these treatments can lead to highly effective patient outcomes, but the complexity and variability of each patient’s immune system and the risk of serious adverse reaction makes development difficult and expensive. 

Using cancer immunotherapies as an example, there are certain barriers currently inhibiting widespread development and implementation. These challenges can range from a lack of confidence in translating pre-clinical findings, to difficulties in identifying optimal combinations of immune-based therapies for any given patient. It is only through cross-sector collaboration that the requisite infrastructure and  knowledge can be developed. For example, researchers can provide insight into the biology of cancer and immune system interactions, while clinicians are able to offer practical knowledge on patient responses and treatment applications. Establishing a dialogue between those in industry and academia will result in scientific discoveries being translated into effective treatments that directly align with patient needs.

Outside of oncology, the potential benefits of immune therapies are far-reaching. They are already examples of these therapies being researched to treat autoimmune diseases such as lupus, desensitize patients to allergens, and target microglia in neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's or central nervous system injuries. Sharing research expertise across disciplines will deepen our understanding of disease mechanisms, ultimately leading to more precise and effective therapies. Furthermore, facilitating collaboration between different sectors – such as bioinformatics and genetics – will help develop personalized immune therapies. 

Health research charities and learned societies, such as the British Society for Immunology (BSI), are well positioned to facilitate cross-disciplinary collaboration and the sharing of knowledge and information, but creating links between industry and academia alone isn’t enough. For truly successful collaboration, experts must come together in an environment that fosters openness and new partnerships. To achieve this, networking opportunities must be carefully designed to allow the exchange of ideas in a way that does not compromise industry privacy. Events, such as the BSI Immune Therapies Summit, that focus on building partnerships through plenary formats are becoming more common, and showcase industry, academia and clinical sectors equally, enabling individuals to contribute their different perspectives freely.

Creating opportunities to openly share insights and information in a non-competitive environment will be fundamental in uncovering novel solutions, and the inclusion of research from across a range of disease areas will also be vital. For example, discoveries relevant to cancer vaccines could have far-reaching implications for diseases such as arthritis, where regulation of the immune system is also implicated. This kind of cross-disciplinary knowledge sharing not only speeds up progress but also broadens the scope of immunotherapies. Incorporating findings from different areas of research and integrating knowledge from diverse scientific fields to tackle the complexities of the immune system will lead to the development of treatments that are applicable to a variety of conditions, and this will ultimately transform the field. 

It is a hugely exciting time for immunology, and through more frequent collaboration and knowledge sharing, we will be able to make a major mark in medicine.