| There have been some great results in the news recently regarding CAR T cells in the treatment of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. I think this one might be a winner. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2873604 http://penncancer.org/cart-19 From what I understand about this treatment, blood is removed from the patient and 'infected' with a harmless HIV virus that has been modified to attach a molecule to T cells. This molecule binds to a receptor (CD19) on the cancer cell, thereby creating T cells that attack the cancer cells. The treated blood is injected back to the patient and the patients body creates more of these cells on it's own- effectively creating an immune response to the cancer cells. Do you think a subset of HN readers could somehow facilitate a project that could help the labs researching ( or planning on researching ) methods for expanding this method of treating cancer? I would like to ( and inspire people here to ): 1) find the available labs that can best perform the _steps_ required for this treatment _process_. Basically, get a list of labs. 2) help expedite iterative methods for techniques that:
a) speed the development time of the specific _step(s)_, and/or
b) broaden the efficacy of the overall treatment _process_ ( ie. treat other cancers ).
Basically, list the _steps_ in the _process_ and see if there is a way to make them faster, better. 3) create tools that allow the people and labs working on this _process_ to communicate as efficiently as possible. Basically, learn how the different labs work and write tools that streamline their collaborative workflow. I have a feeling there are many smart people on this site with free time ( ie. visiting this site often ), technical resources, and organizing skills that could make this happen- fast. Shoot me an email with questions/comments/complaints if you don't want to comment on this thread; I want to help. |