Cancer immunotherapies can work very well, but underperform in some cases due to tumors’ inbuilt survival processes that help them resist attack by the immune system.

Researchers at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute (ONJCRI) and WEHI discovered that the TAK1 gene acts like a safety switch that protects cancer cells from the powerful signals generated by CD8⁺ T cells.

Their paper was published in Cell Reports.

How TAK1 helps cancer cells survive

TAK1 was identified by conducting a large genetic screen to search for genes that help cancer cells survive attacks by CD8⁺ T cells, key killer cells of our immune system.