chemotherapy + natural killer cells

This refers to a combination therapeutic approach in which standard chemotherapy is administered together with adoptive transfer or infusion of natural killer (NK) cells for the treatment of cancer. Chemotherapy is a class of cytotoxic drugs that target rapidly dividing tumor cells, while NK cell therapy involves the use of innate immune lymphocytes capable of recognizing and killing malignant or infected cells without prior sensitization. The rationale for combining these modalities is based on evidence that certain chemotherapeutic agents can modulate the tumor microenvironment, upregulate stress ligands on cancer cells, and enhance their susceptibility to NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity. Additionally, chemotherapy may reduce immunosuppressive factors within tumors, making them more amenable to immune attack by infused or endogenous NK cells. This combination strategy aims to improve anti-tumor efficacy beyond what either modality achieves alone[9][6]. Clinical trials are ongoing in various cancers (e.g., ovarian carcinoma), often using chemotherapy as a preparative regimen before infusing autologous or allogeneic memory-like or expanded NK cells[6]. Mechanistically, this approach leverages both direct cytotoxic effects from chemotherapeutics and immune-mediated clearance via enhanced activity of transferred NK cells.

Other names

chemo + NK cell therapychemotherapy plus natural killer cell therapychemotherapy and NK cells