UCLA scientists turn cord blood into powerful cancer-fighting T cells

T cell receptor therapy, known as TCR therapy, is a form of cancer treatment that genetically modifies immune cells called T cells so they can recognize and attack cancer with high precision.

The approach resembles CAR T-cell therapy, but there is an important difference. CAR T-cell therapy can recognize proteins that naturally sit on the outside of cancer cells. TCR therapy can go deeper. It can detect small pieces of proteins that originate inside a cancer cell and are then transported to the cell surface, where they act like identifying tags.

That expanded reach could be especially important for treating solid tumors. Many of the molecular changes that make these cells cancerous are found inside the cell rather than on its exterior, putting them beyond the reach of many existing immune therapies.