Immune cell 'bloodhounds' track cancer cells' unique metabolic signatures and eliminate tumors in mice

A technique that transforms immune cells into cancer-seeking bloodhounds may overcome a roadblock that has hampered immunotherapy for solid tumors, according to a new study by Stanford Medicine researchers. The approach equips certain types of immune cells with proteins on their surfaces that can recognize byproducts of cancer cells' abnormal metabolism diffusing in the spaces between cells and stimulates the immune cells to migrate toward the tumor.