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Immunotherapy is a type of cancer treatment designed to boost the body's natural defenses to fight cancer. It uses substances made by the body or in a laboratory to improve or restore immune system function. There are several types of immunotherapy, including:

Checkpoint inhibitors: These drugs work by blocking certain proteins, called checkpoints, that help cancer cells avoid attack by the immune system. Examples include PD-1 inhibitors like pembrolizumab and PD-L1 inhibitors like atezolizumab.

Monoclonal antibodies: These are laboratory-made versions of immune system proteins that can identify and attack specific cancer cells. They are often used to treat blood cancers like lymphoma and leukemia.

T-cell transfer therapy: This involves removing some of a patient's T cells, which are a type of white blood cell, and engineering them to recognize and attack cancer cells. The modified T cells are then infused back into the patient.

Vaccines: Some types of immunotherapy use vaccines to stimulate the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells. These vaccines can be made from the patient's own cells or from cells of the same type as the cancer.

Cancer vaccines: These are designed to stimulate the immune system to recognize and attack specific types of cancer cells. They can be made from the patient's own cells or from cells of the same type as the cancer.

Immunotherapy can be used alone or in combination with other treatments, such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy. It is often used to treat advanced or metastatic cancer, as well as certain types of blood cancer. Immunotherapy can have side effects, such as fatigue, skin reactions, and gastrointestinal problems, but these are usually manageable. Research is ongoing to improve the effectiveness and safety of immunotherapy.