Jimmy Carter, the longest-living U.S. President, overcame cancer to reach the age of 100

Jimmy Carter, the longest-living U.S. president, passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Plains, Georgia, as announced by The Carter Center. Just under three months ago, he celebrated his milestone birthday. Carter had been in hospice care for 22 months, starting in February 2023, before he passed away on December 29, a Sunday. The 39th president of the United States battled cancer for many years. At the age of 91, he learned that his melanoma had spread to his brain, and though he initially believed he had only weeks to live, a promising treatment extended his life by many years. His melanoma was discovered during surgery to remove a small liver mass, but the disease had already spread to other areas, including four tiny spots in his brain.

At that time, a groundbreaking immunotherapy called Keytruda, combined with surgery and chemotherapy, proved to be highly effective. Within months of starting the treatment, Carter declared himself cancer-free. However, his health declined further after a fall in 2015, which caused vision and mobility issues, limiting his ability to travel.

Here’s everything you need to know about the treatment that helped Carter overcome cancer.

Immunotherapy is a cancer treatment that boosts the immune system to help it fight cancer, as explained by the National Cancer Institute. Various types of immunotherapy include immune checkpoint inhibitors, T-cell transfer therapy, monoclonal antibodies, treatment vaccines, and immune system modulators.

Former President Jimmy Carter underwent a form of immunotherapy called “checkpoint blockade,” which works by removing molecular brakes that typically control the immune system. This allows the immune system to function more effectively and combat cancer’s ability to hide from it.

Carter’s melanoma was treated with the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab, which was approved by the FDA the year before. Dr. Jedd Wolchok, director of the Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine, explained that the typical survival time for brain metastases like Carter’s is about six and a half months. Carter required six months of treatment, after which he remained cancer-free until the end of his life.

Dr. Wolchok noted that Carter had been off treatment for many years, which highlights the benefit of immunotherapy. Unlike traditional treatments that target tumor cells directly, immunotherapy drugs enable immune cells to take on the main role in fighting cancer. Once the immune system is “trained” to recognize cancer more aggressively, continued medication isn’t always necessary. The immune system has a “memory” and retains the ability to recognize and combat the cancer.

The purpose of immunotherapy is to enhance the immune system’s ability to fight cancer. While the immune system naturally detects and eliminates abnormal cells, it can struggle to identify and attack cancer cells. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), found around tumors, indicate an immune response, and their presence is often linked to better outcomes. However, cancer cells can evade immune detection by altering their genetics, turning off immune cells, or disrupting the surrounding environment. Immunotherapy works by boosting the immune system to recognize and attack cancer more effectively.

Types of Immunotherapy:

1.Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: These drugs block immune checkpoints, which are normal parts of the immune system that prevent immune responses from being too strong. By blocking these checkpoints, the drugs allow immune cells to respond more vigorously to cancer.

2.T-cell Transfer Therapy: This treatment enhances the natural ability of T-cells to fight cancer. Immune cells are taken from a patient’s tumor, selected or modified to better attack cancer cells, grown in large numbers, and then reintroduced into the body through an IV.

3.Monoclonal Antibodies: These are lab-created immune system proteins designed to target specific markers on cancer cells. Some monoclonal antibodies help the immune system identify and destroy cancer cells more effectively.