Hydrogen Gas Boosts Cancer Immunotherapy and Extends Patient Survival

TL;DR

Breathing hydrogen gas may improve the survival of advanced colorectal cancer patients by decreasing the number of exhausted immune cells in their blood.

Key Finding

Hydrogen gas treatment reduced the proportion of exhausted immune cells (PD-1+ CD8+ T cells) in nearly two-thirds of advanced colorectal cancer patients, and when combined with nivolumab immunotherapy, patients experienced significantly longer survival compared to nivolumab alone.

Summary

Researchers studied whether hydrogen gas could help the immune systems of 55 advanced colorectal cancer patients fight their cancer. They focused on a specific type of immune cell (CD8+ T cells) that displays a marker called PD-1, which is associated with poor outcomes in cancer patients. After hydrogen gas treatment, about 64% of patients showed a reduction in these problematic immune cells, and when combined with an immunotherapy drug called nivolumab, patients lived longer than those receiving nivolumab alone.

Practical Takeaway

This early human study suggests hydrogen gas may enhance cancer immunotherapy by improving immune cell function, but the findings are preliminary and limited to one cancer type. The study lacked a control group receiving no hydrogen treatment, making it difficult to determine how much benefit came from hydrogen gas alone versus the combination with nivolumab. More rigorous research with larger patient groups and proper control comparisons would be needed before drawing firm conclusions about hydrogen gas as a cancer treatment.

Abstract (excerpt)

It has been reported that PD-1-expressing CD8+ T cells in the peripheral blood of cancer patients are associated with poor cancer prognosis. In addition, these cells are in a state of energy shortage caused by mitochondrial dysfunction with a low level of PGC-1a. Recently, hydrogen gas was reported…

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