New research at UK's Cambridge University could lead to improved vaccines for cancerous tumors

Researchers at the University of Cambridge, UK, hope to revolutionize cancer therapy after discovering one of the reasons why many previous attempts to harness the immune system to treat cancerous tumors have failed.

New research, published last Fridayin the journal Science, reveals that a type of stromal cell found in many cancers which expresses fibroblast activation protein alpha (FAP), plays a major role in suppressing the immune response in cancerous tumors - thereby restricting the use of vaccines and other therapies which rely on the body's immune system to work. They have also found that if they destroy these cells in a tumour immune suppression is relieved, allowing the immune system to control the previously uncontrolled tumour.

An important step