Cancer Immunotherapy: A Step Change in Cancer Treatment

Over 12 million people die of cancer worldwide each year. Although treatments are improving, there is still a long way to go, and some cancers are still very difficult to treat. Consequently, there is a desperate need for new treatment approaches.

The idea of harnessing your immune system to target tumours has been around for a long time, but in the last five years remarkable clinical trials results have led to immunotherapy being heralded as a potential turning point in the fight against cancer. Learn more about cancer immunotherapy in this free online course from the University of Birmingham.

Cancer Immunotherapy Course Content

This free online course will be relevant if you are interested in cancer, or enjoy learning about the immune system and medicine. It includes the following topics:

The amazing job your immune system does in keeping you healthy;
How we can exploit the immune system to fight cancer.
Why cancer presents the immune system with an especially difficult challenge;
How cancer cells can escape immune attack;
How new immunotherapy strategies are transforming cancer treatment work;
Why they are regarded as such a crucial breakthrough.
New developments in cancer immunotherapy, which might provide the basis for tomorrow’s cancer treatments.

Requirements

Secondary or high school-level knowledge of science is sufficient to complete this course.
There will also be optional, additional materials for those already educated to undergraduate level, and those who would like to challenge themselves and explore beyond the core material.