The immune system prowls the body in a process known as immunosurveillance and eliminates potential threats that it encounters. Cancer evades this surveillance by suppressing the immune system, interfering with the antitumor response. By harnessing the molecular machinery of the immune system, scientists reactivate the natural process of immunosurveillance to combat cancer.
Scientists in the field of immuno-oncology develop numerous immune-mediated methodologies for destroying malignant tumors. From 2019 to 2020, there was a 22% increase in immuno-oncology drugs in the development pipeline, a greater surge than the 15% increase from 2018 to 2019. The number of clinical trials testing immuno-oncology agents also increased by 14% in 2020, despite the ongoing pandemic, affrming immuno-oncology therapies as a mainstay in the drug development pipeline.
Download the Immuno-oncology Drug Development Growth infographic here
ILLUSTRATION BY KRISTYN REID
