Severe COVID Immune Response Found to Shrink Tumors in Mice

A study reveals that severe COVID-19 infections can trigger specialized immune cells with potent anti-cancer properties, offering potential new cancer treatment avenues.

• Researchers discovered that severe COVID-19 infections generate unique monocytes capable of shrinking advanced tumors in mice by activating natural killer (NK) cells.
• These specialized monocytes migrate to tumor sites and signal NK cells to attack cancer cells, bypassing mechanisms that typically allow tumors to evade immune responses.
• The study highlights a novel cancer-fighting mechanism independent of T cells, which are the focus of many existing immunotherapies that only work in 20%-40% of cases.
• Findings are based on animal studies involving melanoma, lung, breast, and colon cancers; clinical trials are needed to confirm effectiveness in humans.
• Scientists caution against seeking COVID-19 infections as a treatment, emphasizing the risks of severe illness while exploring safer drug therapies inspired by this mechanism.

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