Exploding cancer cells can cause serious side effects in CAR-T cell therapies

Blocking a protein makes cells shrink instead, causing fewer problems

CAR-T cells

CAR-T cells (illustrated in red) target and can kill some cancer cells (blue) by making them swell and rupture, triggering dangerous inflammation in patients.

Meletios Verras/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Techniques to genetically modify patient immune cells have revolutionized the fight against hard-to-treat cancers.