A team led by researchers at Harvard Medical School has identified a way that tumor cells can turn off the immune system, allowing the tumor to grow unchecked. The research, conducted primarily in mice and published Sept. 29 in Science, shows that tumor cells with a particular mutation release a chemical, a metabolite, that weakens nearby immune cells, rendering them less capable of killing cancer cells.
Learn more: https://hms.harvard.edu/news/disarming-bodys-defenders