23andMe inches closes to cancer immunotherapy, guided by its genetic database

23andMe is building on the success of immunotherapies like Merck & Co.’s Keytruda and Bristol Myers Squibb’s Opdivo, which are checkpoint inhibitors that block a pathway between tumors and the immune system, allowing the body to fight back against cancer. But with a wealth of knowledge at their fingertips, researchers at 23andMe have uncovered new pathways that could have a similar effect and add to the arsenal of oncology drugs, said Dr. Jennifer Low, head of the company’s therapeutics department.