A major goal of modern cancer research is to put new life into the body's natural antitumor defenses. The problem is that these tumor cells are growing in the context of our own immune system, and the immune system is no longer effective in fighting it. What happens is we get tolerance. Our challenge is to overcome this. There is no cure.
Most patients get lots of chemotherapy, which helps, but most people survive only three years.
Traditionally, doctors give the immune system a second chance to fight multiple myeloma by wiping out the immune system with intense chemotherapy, and then replacing it using a bone marrow transplant. The transplant itself goes well if it uses a person's own bone marrow, harvested just before the chemotherapy. If a relative's bone marrow is used instead of the patient's own bone marrow, the immune responses that come back are more aggressive. A few patients have been cured in this way. Borrello thinks he has a better idea.