[Young journalist Hayoon Cho] Seoul National University Hospital has presented a next-generation precision treatment strategy based on nanotechnology that could significantly improve response rates to existing cancer immunotherapies while reducing systemic side effects.
 
A research team led by Professor Sun Ha Paek of the Department of Neurosurgery at Seoul National University Hospital, including Dr. Eon Taek Jo, collaborated with researchers from University Hospital Bonn in Germany and Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China. The team announced on September 10 that it had published a review article covering the latest developments in nano-immunotherapy and multi-combination treatment platforms in the international journal Molecular Cancer (Impact Factor 42.2).
 
Cancer immunotherapies and CAR-T cell therapy have transformed the paradigm of cancer treatment by achieving groundbreaking results in blood cancers and other cancers. However, they still face limitations in treating solid tumors because immune cells have difficulty penetrating tumors. They can also cause systemic immune-related toxicities, including colitis and pneumonitis. Professor Paek’s research team, based at the Brain Tumor Laboratory of the Seoul National University Cancer Research Institute, has continued to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the progression of difficult-to-treat brain tumors, including glioblastoma, and neurological diseases, while identifying new therapeutic targets. The team has also strengthened its global research capabilities by conducting genomic studies of gliomas and developing precision treatment models in collaboration with leading international research institutions, including The Jackson Laboratory in the United States.

Using precision delivery systems based on nanoparticles, the researchers established potential applications in six major areas of cancer immunotherapy: ▲immune checkpoint inhibitors ▲cancer vaccines ▲CAR-T cells ▲CIK cells ▲cytokines and ▲complement-based therapies. They introduced personalised mRNA cancer vaccine delivery using lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), as well as technology that directly generates CAR-T cells inside the body without requiring an ex vivo cell-culture process. The team also proposed a conceptual strategy in which nanoparticles containing four immune-stimulating substances induce CIK-like characteristics within the body, as well as a combined hyperthermia and drug-treatment platform using iron oxide nanoparticles and an external magnetic field.

Through the review, the researchers also identified practical challenges that must be addressed for clinical translation, including the standardisation of mass production and the establishment of safety assessment systems, laying the groundwork for the commercialisation of next-generation precision medicine.
 
Professor Paek said, “Nanotechnology is an innovative platform that can improve the precision of delivery in cancer immunotherapy while reducing side effects,” adding, “We hope this paper will provide practical guidance for the development and clinical application of next-generation personalised cancer treatments.”

▶원문 기사: 서울대병원, 나노기술 결합한 차세대 암 면역치료 전략 제시 (이코노미스트, 2026.9.10)

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