August 5, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

Revolutionary Immunotherapy: Dr. O’Day Tackles T-cells at Providence Saint John’s

By Staff Writer

Steven J. O’Day, MD is the Professor of Medical Oncology and the Director of Immuno-Oncology and Clinical Research at The John Wayne Cancer Institute and Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. Through his work at the John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John’s Health Center, Dr. O’Day has revolutionized how melanoma is treated around the world. He has begun applying that same treatment to other cancers in hopes of making as big of an impact on solid tumor treatments as he has done with his work in melanoma.

“We are going through a revolution in the treatment of cancer around the field of the Immunotherapy, using the immune system to fight cancer. Immunotherapy has absolutely revolutionized the treatment of melanoma, but even more importantly, other cancers are benefitting from what we have learned from treating melanoma,” said Dr. O’Day. “We’re now able to harness the immune system’s T-cells, which are cells in the immune system that normally protect us from cancer.”

Dr. O’Day explained that new treatments for melanoma involve giving patients intravenous T-cell antibodies to reinvigorate T-cells that have been exhausted or rendered inactive by a cancer, bringing them back into a working state.

This treatment has resulted in a long-term benefit for 50 and 60 percent of melanoma patients, and has been approved for use in the treatment of lung, bladder, kidney, head, neck, and other cancers. The more the treatment is refined, the success rate will steadily approach that of its efficacy against melanoma.

“At the John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John’s, we’ve been a worldwide leader in the research into the immune system and cancer,” said Dr. O’Day. “It’s really a revolutionary time. In some disease, we are using immunotherapy before chemotherapy and reserving chemotherapy when immunotherapy doesn’t work said Dr. O’Day. Immunotherapy has different side effects and toxicities that are often better tolerated then the side effects of chemotherapy.

Dr. O’Day has been practicing at Providence Saint John’s for more than 20 years “It’s been very gratifying to see the success in melanoma, and now I spend a lot of time educating doctors around the world how to use these drugs not only on melanoma but other malignancies,” said Dr. O’Day.

Aside from his work in immunotherapy, additionally, Dr. O’Day works with the team at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in researching and developing new treatments, through clinical research and laboratory research.

Through clinical research, the staff at the John Wayne Cancer Institute runs clinical trials, testing the efficacy of newly developed treatments against a control group of patients. Laboratory research involves analyzing tissue and blood samples from patients with specific responses to new treatments in order to analyze what in the treatment caused that particular result.

Grants from the federal government, private foundations and philanthropic donations all support the cutting-edge and high level of research that defines the work being done at the John Wayne Cancer Institute.

Steve J. O’Day, M.D. works with the team at the John Wayne Cancer Institute.
Photo: Providence Saint John’s.
Related Posts

Deadly Crosswalk Hit and Run in West Adams, Victim Hit Multiple Times and Left to Die

August 4, 2025

August 4, 2025

Police Seek Public Help to Identify Three Drivers Who Struck and Killed a Pedestrian  Detectives with the Los Angeles Police...

Woman Shot During Attempted Electric Bicycle Robbery in Culver City

August 4, 2025

August 4, 2025

Suspects Remain at Large After Confrontation Ends in Gunfire Early Monday morning, gunfire erupted during an attempted robbery on Sepulveda...

DUI Suspect Crashed Into Parked Cars in Culver City, Injuring Residents

August 4, 2025

August 4, 2025

Crash Sent Three People to the Hospital on Sunday Afternoon  Culver City Police arrested a man Sunday afternoon following a...

Elvis Meets Oedipus at the Getty Villa in Fall Premiere of Oedipus the King, Mama!

August 4, 2025

August 4, 2025

Getty Villa Stages Rock-Fueled Oedipus Satire Under the Stars The Getty Villa Museum will bring the myth of Oedipus to...

Culver City Approves 344-Unit Project, Drops Office Space From Jefferson Site Plan

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

More Housing, Less Office Space as Long-Stalled Site Moves Toward Construction Culver City officials have signed off on a revised...

Cary Grant’s Former Beverly Hills Estate Hits Market for $77.5M

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

Rebuilt by His Widow, the Home Now Offers Sweeping Views Once owned by Hollywood legend Cary Grant, a Beverly Hills...

LA Housing Permits Rebound in Q2: Wildfire Rebuild and Fast-Tracked Reviews Spur Modest Growth

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

New Data Shows a 37% Quarterly Jump in Residential Permits, Long-Term Uncertainty Looms Residential development in Los Angeles picked up...

Federal Court Upholds Stay on Trump-Era Immigration Raids in California

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

Detention Horror Stories and Legal Pressure Keep Feds at Bay  A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a temporary order...

Two LA County Deputies Charged in Off-Duty Scheme Tied to Crypto ‘Godfather’

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

Deputies Accused of Abusing Law Enforcement Powers for Beverly Hills Mogul One Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy pleaded guilty,...

Metro Releases Draft Environmental Report for Sepulveda Transit Project, Public Comment Now Open

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

Six Route Alternatives Under Review for Valley-To-Westside Connection The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has released its Draft...

Trump Administration Freezes $200M in UCLA Research Funds Over Student Protests

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

UCLA Says Freeze Harms Life-Saving Research With No Connection to Stated Reason Donald Trump’s administration has blocked $200 million in...

Culver City’s National Night Out Returns August 5 With K9 Demo, Live Music, and Fun

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

This Year’s Celebration Moves to the Culver Steps to Encourage Community Spirit Culver City’s annual National Night Out celebration returns...

City Installs Crosswalks In Sawtelle District After Residents Paint Their Own

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Los Angeles Begins Official Safety Upgrades Near Stoner Park City crews began installing official crosswalks Friday near Stoner Park in...

HARD Summer Returns This Weekend With New Sound Strategy After 2024 Noise Complaints

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Sold-Out EDM and Hip-Hop Festival Runs Saturday and Sunday at Hollywood Park The HARD Summer music festival is set to...

Free Document Shredding, Electronics Recycling Set for Saturday in Culver City

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Culver City Offers Secure Way to Recycle Tech and Shred Paper This Weekend Residents will have the opportunity to responsibly...