Targeted cancer drugs and immunotherapy
Targeted cancer drugs work by ‘targeting’ the differences that help a cancer cell to survive and grow. Immunotherapy uses our immune system to fight cancer.
Targeted treatments include cancer growth blockers, drugs that block cancer blood vessel growth and PARP inhibitors. Immunotherapy treatments include checkpoint inhibitors, vaccines, cytokines and CAR T-cell therapy. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) may be called a type of targeted cancer drug or immunotherapy, but they can work in both ways.
Find out more about the different types of treatments and possible side effects.
What are targeted cancer drugs?
Targeted cancer drugs work by ‘targeting’ the differences that help a cancer cell to survive and grow. There are many different types of targeted drugs.
What is immunotherapy?
Immunotherapy uses our immune system to fight cancer. It works by helping the immune system recognise and attack cancer cells.
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs)
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are a type of cancer treatment. They may be called a type of targeted cancer drug or immunotherapy. But they can work in both ways. Find out more.
Cancer growth blockers
Cancer growth blockers are also called cancer growth inhibitors. They are a type of targeted cancer drug. They aim to stop cancer cells from growing. There are many different types.
CAR T-cell therapy
CAR T-cell therapy is a type of immunotherapy. It is also called adoptive cell transfer. It's a possible treatment for some children and adults with leukaemia. It is also a treatment for some adults with lymphoma.
Checkpoint Inhibitors
Checkpoint inhibitors are a type of immunotherapy that block different checkpoint proteins. Examples include pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and ipilimumab (Yervoy).
PARP inhibitors
PARP inhibitors are a type of targeted treatment for several cancers including ovarian, breast and prostate cancer. You might have them as part of a clinical trial for other types of cancer. Find out more about how they work.
Vaccines to treat cancer
Vaccines are a type of immunotherapy. There are different types of vaccines including those that protect us from disease and cancer. There are also vaccines to treat cancer. Find out more about this.
Drugs that block cancer blood vessel growth (anti angiogenics)
Anti angiogenics are drugs that try to stop cancers from growing blood vessels. They are a type of targeted cancer drug. Find out about the different types and how they work.
Cytokines
Cytokines are a group of proteins that are found naturally in the body. They are a type of immunotherapy that's used to treat a group of blood cancers called myeloproliferative neoplasms. Find out more.
