What does immunotherapy treat?

Some cancers reduce immune activity around them. Checkpoint inhibitor drugs remove particular immune brakes, allowing immune cells to respond to cancer. Whether this approach is suitable depends on the cancer type, stage, tumour markers, previous treatment, and general health.

Immunotherapy may be used for bladder cancer, cervical cancer, bowel cancer, stomach cancer, head and neck cancer, and selected triple-negative breast cancers. It may be given alone, with chemotherapy, before surgery, after surgery, or for disease that has spread.

Ask whether your tumour needs biomarker testing and whether a checkpoint inhibitor is planned. Give the team a full list of medicines, autoimmune conditions, organ problems, and previous transplants. These details can affect the safety and choice of treatment.

Keep a symptom diary during and after infusions. Immune effects can involve the skin, bowel, lungs, liver, thyroid, or other organs. Do not start steroids or stop treatment without contacting the oncology team, unless emergency clinicians advise it.

Call your oncology team promptly for new or worsening breathlessness, persistent diarrhoea, severe abdominal pain, yellow skin, dark urine, widespread rash, confusion, severe headache, or unusual weakness. Fever or a sudden allergic-type reaction during an infusion needs urgent assessment.

What cancer feature supports immunotherapy for me? Will I receive it alone or with chemotherapy? Which symptoms should I report the same day? How could treatment affect an autoimmune condition or an organ problem I already have?