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Tumor immunology. Clin Immunol 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-818006-8.00003-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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Context-Dependent Effects Explain Divergent Prognostic Roles of Tregs in Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14122991. [PMID: 35740658 PMCID: PMC9221270 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14122991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Immune cells play an important role in cancer, with regard to classification, diagnostic or prognostic matters. In particular, we focused on the prognostic value of Tregs in this meta-analysis. We took into account the local context and their heterogeneity in order to solve their apparent ambiguous role. We used three proxies to recapitulate the complexity of the context: the neighboring cell, the tissue and the quantification method; and we carefully dissected the regulatory population into existing subsets. We showed that CD45RO+ Tregs had a reproducible negative prognostic value across all five cancer types studied (breast, colorectal, gastric, lung and ovarian). It suggests that Tregs from an homogeneous context have a consistent prognostic role across cancer types. Abstract Assessing cancer prognosis is a challenging task, given the heterogeneity of the disease. Multiple features (clinical, environmental, genetic) have been used for such assessments. The tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) is a key feature, and describing the impact of its many components on cancer prognosis is an active field of research. The complexity of the tumor microenvironment context makes it difficult to use the TIME to assess prognosis, as demonstrated by the example of regulatory T cells (Tregs). The effect of Tregs on prognosis is ambiguous, with different studies considering them to be negative, positive or neutral. We focused on five different cancer types (breast, colorectal, gastric, lung and ovarian). We clarified the definition of Tregs and their utility for assessing cancer prognosis by taking the context into account via the following parameters: the Treg subset, the anatomical location of these cells, and the neighboring cells. With a meta-analysis on these three parameters, we were able to clarify the prognostic role of Tregs. We found that CD45RO+ Tregs had a reproducible negative effect on prognosis across cancer types, and we gained insight into the contributions of the anatomical location of Tregs and of their neighboring cells on their prognostic value. Our results suggest that Tregs play a similar prognostic role in all cancer types. We also establish guidelines for improving the design of future studies addressing the pathophysiological role of Tregs in cancer.
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Shetty SS, Padam KSR, Hunter KD, Kudva A, Radhakrishnan R. Biological implications of the immune factors in the tumour microenvironment of oral cancer. Arch Oral Biol 2021; 133:105294. [PMID: 34735925 DOI: 10.1016/j.archoralbio.2021.105294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2021] [Revised: 10/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The objective of this review is to decipher the biological implications of the immune factors in the tumour microenvironment in oral cancer. The restoration of balance between tumour tolerance and tumour eradication by the host immune cells is critical to provide effective therapeutic strategies. DESIGN The specific role of the stromal and the immune components in oral cancer was reviewed with a tailored search strategy using relevant keywords. The articles were retrieved from bibliometric databases indexed in PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. An in silico analysis was performed to identify potential drug candidates for immunotherapy, by accessing the Drug-Gene Interactions Database (DGIdb) using the rDGIdb package. RESULTS There is compelling evidence for the role of the cellular and extracellular components of the tumour microenvironment in inducing immunosuppression and progression of oral cancer. The druggable candidates specifically targeting the immune system are a viable option in the treatment of oral cancer as they can regulate the tumour microenvironment. CONCLUSION A complex interaction between the tumour and the immunological microenvironment influences the disease outcome in oral cancer. Targeting specific components of the immune system might be relevant, as immunotherapy may become the new standard of care for oral cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Smitha Sammith Shetty
- Department of Oral Pathology, Faculty of Dentistry, Melaka Manipal Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal 576104, India
| | - Kanaka Sai Ram Padam
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal 576104, India
| | - Keith D Hunter
- Academic Unit of Oral and Maxillofacial Medicine and Pathology, School of Clinical Dentistry, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Adarsh Kudva
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal 576104, India
| | - Raghu Radhakrishnan
- Department of Oral Pathology, Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal 576104, India.
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Lin Z, Xie YZ, Zhao MC, Hou PP, Tang J, Chen GL. Xanthine dehydrogenase as a prognostic biomarker related to tumor immunology in hepatocellular carcinoma. Cancer Cell Int 2021; 21:475. [PMID: 34496841 PMCID: PMC8425161 DOI: 10.1186/s12935-021-02173-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) is a critical enzyme involved in the oxidative metabolism of purines, pterin and aldehydes and a central component of the innate immune system. However, the prognostic value of XDH in predicting tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte abundance, the immune response, and survival in different cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is still unclear. Methods XDH expression was analyzed in multiple databases, including Oncomine, the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER), the Kaplan–Meier plotter database, the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) database, and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). XDH-associated transcriptional profiles were detected with an mRNA array, and the levels of infiltrating immune cells were validated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) of HCC tissues. A predictive signature containing multiple XDH-associated immune genes was established using the Cox regression model. Results Decreased XDH mRNA expression was detected in human cancers originating from the liver, bladder, breast, colon, bile duct, kidney, and hematolymphoid system. The prognostic potential of XDH mRNA expression was also significant in certain other cancers, including HCC, breast cancer, kidney or bladder carcinoma, gastric cancer, mesothelioma, lung cancer, and ovarian cancer. In HCC, a low XDH mRNA level predicted poorer overall survival, disease-specific survival, disease-free survival, and progression-free survival. The prognostic value of XDH was independent of the clinical features of HCC patients. Indeed, XDH expression in HCC activated several immune-related pathways, including the T cell receptor, PI3K-AKT, and MAPK signaling pathways, which induced a cytotoxic immune response. Importantly, the microenvironment of XDHhigh HCC tumors contained abundant infiltrating CD8 + T cells but not exhausted T cells. A risk prediction signature based on multiple XDH-associated immune genes was revealed as an independent predictor in the TCGA liver cancer cohort. Conclusion These findings suggest that XDH is a valuable prognostic biomarker in HCC and other cancers and indicate that it may function in tumor immunology. Loss of XDH expression may be an immune evasion mechanism for HCC. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12935-021-02173-7.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Lin
- Department of Oncology, First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310003, China.,Department of Internal Medicine 3, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) and Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, 91054, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Yi-Zhao Xie
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University, Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, 200032, China.,Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Ming-Chun Zhao
- Department of Pathology, Guilin Hospital of Chinese Traditional and Western Medicine, Guilin, 541004, China
| | - Pin-Pin Hou
- Central Laboratory, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 201114, China
| | - Juan Tang
- Department of Pathology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical University, Guilin, 541199, China.
| | - Guang-Liang Chen
- Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University, Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, 200032, China. .,Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
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Datta P, Dey M, Ataie Z, Unutmaz D, Ozbolat IT. 3D bioprinting for reconstituting the cancer microenvironment. NPJ Precis Oncol 2020; 4:18. [PMID: 32793806 PMCID: PMC7385083 DOI: 10.1038/s41698-020-0121-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 31.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2020] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The cancer microenvironment is known for its complexity, both in its content as well as its dynamic nature, which is difficult to study using two-dimensional (2D) cell culture models. Several advances in tissue engineering have allowed more physiologically relevant three-dimensional (3D) in vitro cancer models, such as spheroid cultures, biopolymer scaffolds, and cancer-on-a-chip devices. Although these models serve as powerful tools for dissecting the roles of various biochemical and biophysical cues in carcinoma initiation and progression, they lack the ability to control the organization of multiple cell types in a complex dynamic 3D architecture. By virtue of its ability to precisely define perfusable networks and position of various cell types in a high-throughput manner, 3D bioprinting has the potential to more closely recapitulate the cancer microenvironment, relative to current methods. In this review, we discuss the applications of 3D bioprinting in mimicking cancer microenvironment, their use in immunotherapy as prescreening tools, and overview of current bioprinted cancer models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pallab Datta
- Centre for Healthcare Science and Technology, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology Shibpur, Howrah, India
| | - Madhuri Dey
- Department of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
| | - Zaman Ataie
- Engineering Science and Mechanics Department, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
| | - Derya Unutmaz
- The Jackson Laboratory of Genomics Medicine, Farmington, CT USA
| | - Ibrahim T. Ozbolat
- Engineering Science and Mechanics Department, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
- The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
- Biomedical Engineering Department, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
- Materials Research Institute, Penn State University, University Park, PA USA
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Keam SP, Halse H, Nguyen T, Wang M, Van Kooten Losio N, Mitchell C, Caramia F, Byrne DJ, Haupt S, Ryland G, Darcy PK, Sandhu S, Blombery P, Haupt Y, Williams SG, Neeson PJ. High dose-rate brachytherapy of localized prostate cancer converts tumors from cold to hot. J Immunother Cancer 2020; 8:e000792. [PMID: 32581061 PMCID: PMC7319782 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-000792] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Prostate cancer (PCa) has a profoundly immunosuppressive microenvironment and is commonly immune excluded with few infiltrative lymphocytes and low levels of immune activation. High-dose radiation has been demonstrated to stimulate the immune system in various human solid tumors. We hypothesized that localized radiation therapy, in the form of high dose-rate brachytherapy (HDRBT), would overcome immune suppression in PCa. METHODS To investigate whether HDRBT altered prostate immune context, we analyzed preradiation versus postradiation human tissue from a cohort of 24 patients with localized PCa that received HDRBT as primary treatment (RadBank cohort). We performed Nanostring immune gene expression profiling, digital spatial profiling, and high-throughput immune cell multiplex immunohistochemistry analysis. We also resolved tumor and nontumor zones in spatial and bioinformatic analyses to explore the immunological response. RESULTS Nanostring immune profiling revealed numerous immune checkpoint molecules (eg, B7-H3, CTLA4, PDL1, and PDL2) and TGFβ levels were increased in response to HDRBT. We used a published 16-gene tumor inflammation signature (TIS) to divide tumors into distinct immune activation states (high:hot, intermediate and low:cold) and showed that most localized PCa are cold tumors pre-HDRBT. Crucially, HDRBT converted 80% of these 'cold'-phenotype tumors into an 'intermediate' or 'hot' class. We used digital spatial profiling to show these HDRBT-induced changes in prostate TIS scores were derived from the nontumor regions. Furthermore, these changes in TIS were also associated with pervasive changes in immune cell density and spatial relationships-in particular, between T cell subsets and antigen presenting cells. We identified an increased density of CD4+ FOXP3+ T cells, CD68+ macrophages and CD68+ CD11c+ dendritic cells in response to HDRBT. The only subset change specific to tumor zones was PDL1- macrophages. While these immune responses were heterogeneous, HDRBT induced significant changes in immune cell associations, including a gained T cell and HMWCK+ PDL1+ interaction in tumor zones. CONCLUSION In conclusion, we showed HDRBT converted "cold" prostate tumors into more immunologically activated "hot" tissues, with accompanying spatially organized immune infiltrates and signaling changes. Understanding and potentially harnessing these changes will have widespread implications for the future treatment of localized PCa, including rational use of combination radio-immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon P Keam
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Tumor Suppression Laboratory, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Heloise Halse
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Thu Nguyen
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Minyu Wang
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Catherine Mitchell
- Pathology Department, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Franco Caramia
- Tumor Suppression Laboratory, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - David J Byrne
- Pathology Department, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Sue Haupt
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Tumor Suppression Laboratory, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Georgina Ryland
- Pathology Department, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Phillip K Darcy
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Shahneen Sandhu
- Genitourinary Oncology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Piers Blombery
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Pathology Department, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Ygal Haupt
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Tumor Suppression Laboratory, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Scott G Williams
- Division of Radiation Oncology and Cancer Imaging, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paul J Neeson
- Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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Guo D, Wang M, Shen Z, Zhu J. A new immune signature for survival prediction and immune checkpoint molecules in lung adenocarcinoma. J Transl Med 2020; 18:123. [PMID: 32143735 PMCID: PMC7060601 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-020-02286-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 02/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the most frequent subtype of lung cancer. The prognostic signature could be reliable to stratify LUAD patients according to risk, which helps the management of the systematic treatments. In this study, a systematic and reliable immune signature was performed to estimate the prognostic stratification in LUAD. Methods The profiles of immune-related genes for patients with LUAD were used as one TCGA training set: n = 494, other validation set 1: n = 226 and validation set 2: n = 398. Univariate Cox survival analysis was used to identify the candidate immune-related genes from each cohort. Then, the immune signature was developed and validated in the training and validation sets. Results In this study, functional analysis showed that immune-related genes involved in immune regulation and MAPK signaling pathway. A prognostic signature based on 10 immune-related genes was established in the training set and patients were divided into high-risk and low-risk groups. Our 10 immune-related gene signature was significantly related to worse survival, especially during early-stage tumors. Further stratification analyses revealed that this 10 immune-related gene signature was still an effective tool for predicting prognosis in smoking or nonsmoking patients, patients with KRAS mutation or KRAS wild-type, and patients with EGFR mutation or EGFR wild-type. Our signature was negatively correlated with B cell, CD4+ T cell, CD8+ T cell, neutrophil, dendritic cell (DC), and macrophage immune infiltration, and immune checkpoint molecules PD-1 and CTLA-4 (P < 0.05). Conclusions These findings suggested that our signature was a promising biomarker for prognosis prediction and can facilitate the management of immunotherapy in LUAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dina Guo
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Ningbo Yinzhou No.2 Hospital, Ningbo, 315100, Zhejiang, China
| | - Mian Wang
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Ningbo Yinzhou No.2 Hospital, Ningbo, 315100, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhihong Shen
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Ningbo Yinzhou No.2 Hospital, Ningbo, 315100, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jiaona Zhu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Ningbo Yinzhou No.2 Hospital, Ningbo, 315100, Zhejiang, China.
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Guisier F, Barros-Filho MC, Rock LD, Strachan-Whaley M, Marshall EA, Dellaire G, Lam WL. Janus or Hydra: The Many Faces of T Helper Cells in the Human Tumour Microenvironment. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2020; 1224:35-51. [PMID: 32036603 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-35723-8_3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
CD4+ T helper (TH) cells are key regulators in the tumour immune microenvironment (TIME), mediating the adaptive immunological response towards cancer, mainly through the activation of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. After antigen recognition and proper co-stimulation, naïve TH cells are activated, undergo clonal expansion, and release cytokines that will define the differentiation of a specific effector TH cell subtype. These different subtypes have different functions, which can mediate both anti- and pro-tumour immunological responses. Here, we present the dual role of TH cells restraining or promoting the tumour, the factors controlling their homing and differentiation in the TIME, their influence on immunotherapy, and their use as prognostic indicators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Guisier
- Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada. .,Department of Pneumology, Thoracic Oncology and Intensive Respiratory Care, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen, France.
| | - Mateus Camargo Barros-Filho
- Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,International Research Center, A.C.Camargo Cancer Center, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Leigha D Rock
- Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Department of Oral and Biological Medical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Department of Cancer Control Research, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Faculty of Dentistry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
| | | | - Erin A Marshall
- Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Graham Dellaire
- Department of Pathology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.,Canadian Environmental Exposures in Cancer (CE2C) Network (CE2C.ca), Halifax, NS, Canada
| | - Wan L Lam
- Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Canadian Environmental Exposures in Cancer (CE2C) Network (CE2C.ca), Halifax, NS, Canada
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Croce L, Coperchini F, Magri F, Chiovato L, Rotondi M. The multifaceted anti-cancer effects of BRAF-inhibitors. Oncotarget 2019; 10:6623-6640. [PMID: 31762942 PMCID: PMC6859927 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.27304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Accepted: 10/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The BRAF gene is commonly involved in normal processes of cell growth and differentiation. The BRAF (V600E) mutation is found in several human cancer, causing an increase of cell proliferation due to a modification of the ERK/MAPK-signal cascade. In particular, BRAFV600E mutation is found in those melanoma or thyroid cancer refractory to the common therapy and with a more aggressive phenotype. BRAF V600E was found to influence the composition of the so-called tumour microenvironment modulating both solid (immune-cell infiltration) and soluble (chemokines) mediators, which balance characterize the ultimate behaviour of the tumour, making it more or less aggressive. In particular, the presence of BRAFV600E mutation would be associated with a change of this balance to a more aggressive phenotype of the tumour and a worse prognosis. The investigation of the possible modulation of those components of tumour microenvironment is nowadays object of several studies as a new potential target therapy in those more complicated cases. At present several clinical trials both in melanoma and thyroid cancer are using BRAF-inhibitors with encouraging results, which are derived also from numerous in vitro pre-clinical studies aimed at evaluate the possible modulation of immune-cell density and of specific pro-tumorigenic chemokine secretion (CXCL8 and CCL2) by several BRAF-inhibitors in the context of melanoma and thyroid cancer. This review will encompass in vitro and in vivo studies which investigated the modulation of the tumour microenvironment by BRAF-inhibitors, highlighting also the most recent clinical trials with a specific focus on melanoma and thyroid cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Croce
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
- PHD course in Experimental Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Francesca Coperchini
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Flavia Magri
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
- Department of Internal Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Luca Chiovato
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
- Department of Internal Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Mario Rotondi
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
- Department of Internal Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
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Prognostic Value of Combined Analysis of CTLA-4 and PLR in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (ESCC) Patients. DISEASE MARKERS 2019; 2019:1601072. [PMID: 31485274 PMCID: PMC6710793 DOI: 10.1155/2019/1601072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2019] [Revised: 04/30/2019] [Accepted: 05/21/2019] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prognostic role of the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) expression level and the platelet lymphocyte ratio (PLR) level in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients. Methods 84 ESCC patients who received surgical treatment in our hospital were enrolled in the study. The correlation of each biomarker's level with ESCC patients' clinicopathological characteristics and overall survival (OS) was assessed. Results The elevated expression rate of T-CTLA-4 (tumor cell CTLA-4) and I-CTLA-4 (interstitial lymphocyte CTLA-4) was 48.8% and 44.0%, respectively. The number of enrolled patients with a higher PLR level (≥119) was 48. The prognostic value of T-CTLA-4, I-CTLA-4, and PLR in ESCC patients was not detected. However, patients with both a low T-CTLA-4 expression level and a low PLR level that had longer OS (p = 0.023) were found. The prognostic role of T-CTLA-4(-) +PLR (-) status in ESCC patients was also confirmed in multivariate analyses (p = 0.027). Conclusion These results demonstrated the potential prognostic value of combined analysis of CTLA-4 and PLR in ESCC patients.
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McAllister MJ, Underwood MA, Leung HY, Edwards J. A review on the interactions between the tumor microenvironment and androgen receptor signaling in prostate cancer. Transl Res 2019; 206:91-106. [PMID: 30528321 DOI: 10.1016/j.trsl.2018.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2018] [Revised: 10/23/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Prostate cancer growth is controlled by androgen receptor signaling via both androgen-dependent and androgen-independent pathways. Furthermore, the prostate is an immune competent organ with inflammatory changes both within the systemic and local environment contributing to the reprogramming of the prostatic epithelium with consistently elevated lymphocyte infiltration and proinflammatory cytokines being found in prostate cancer. The crosstalk between the tumor microenvironment and androgen receptor signaling is complex with both protumorigenic and antitumorigenic roles observed. However, despite an increase in immune checkpoint inhibitors and inflammatory signaling blockades available for a range of cancer types, we are yet to see substantial progress in the treatment of prostate cancer. Therefore, this review aims to summarize the tumor microenvironment and its impact on androgen receptor signaling in prostate cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milly J McAllister
- Unit of Experimental Therapeutics, Institute of Cancer Sciences, College of Medical, Veterinary, and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom.
| | - Mark A Underwood
- Department of Urology, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Hing Y Leung
- Unit of Experimental Therapeutics, Institute of Cancer Sciences, College of Medical, Veterinary, and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom; Department of Urology, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, United Kingdom; Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Joanne Edwards
- Unit of Experimental Therapeutics, Institute of Cancer Sciences, College of Medical, Veterinary, and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
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Wedekind MF, Haworth KB, Arnold M, Stanek JR, Lee D, Cripe TP. Immune profiles of desmoplastic small round cell tumor and synovial sarcoma suggest different immunotherapeutic susceptibility upfront compared to relapse specimens. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2018; 65:e27313. [PMID: 30015384 DOI: 10.1002/pbc.27313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2018] [Accepted: 06/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) and synovial sarcoma are rare tumors with dismal outcomes requiring new therapeutic strategies. Immunotherapies have shown promise in several cancer types, but have not been evaluated in DSRCT and synovial sarcoma. Because the immune microenvironment can provide indications of the inflammatory nature of tumors, immunohistochemical staining is able to assess the tumor immune infiltrates in both tumor types. PROCEDURE Using tissue microarrays of DSRCT and synovial sarcoma tumor samples, we detected tumoral HLA-A/B/C, beta-2-microglobulin(B2M), and PD-L1 expression, and quantified tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes expressing CD4, CD8, CD56, CD45RO, or FOXP3 by immunohistochemistry. We used staining intensity on a scale of 0-3 and percentage of tumor stained to determine HLA, B2M, and PD-L1 scores. We calculated the cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) target score as HLA score × B2M score/100. RESULTS In diagnostic samples, we found high HLA and CTL target scores and low PD-L1 expression with decreased scores in recurrence for both tumor types. We found an increase in CD56+ natural killer cells in DSRCT samples from diagnosis to recurrence. CONCLUSIONS We found similar immunostimulatory profiles in DSRCT and synovial sarcoma. Our findings suggest that DSRCT and synovial sarcoma may be amenable to immunotherapies, albeit there was significant heterogeneity. Interestingly, HLA and CTL target scores decreased at recurrence, possibly reflecting immunoevasion. Our findings suggest both tumor types may be amendable to CTL-based therapies at diagnosis but less so at relapse. Our results support further investigation into the prognostic and predictive value of these findings in a larger dataset.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Frances Wedekind
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplant, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.,Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Kellie B Haworth
- Divison of Neuro-Oncology, Department of Oncology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - Michael Arnold
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.,Department of Pathology, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Joseph R Stanek
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplant, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Dean Lee
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplant, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.,Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Timothy P Cripe
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplant, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.,Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
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13
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Danaher P, Warren S, Lu R, Samayoa J, Sullivan A, Pekker I, Wallden B, Marincola FM, Cesano A. Pan-cancer adaptive immune resistance as defined by the Tumor Inflammation Signature (TIS): results from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). J Immunother Cancer 2018; 6:63. [PMID: 29929551 PMCID: PMC6013904 DOI: 10.1186/s40425-018-0367-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 261] [Impact Index Per Article: 43.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The Tumor Inflammation Signature (TIS) is an investigational use only (IUO) 18-gene signature that measures a pre-existing but suppressed adaptive immune response within tumors. The TIS has been shown to enrich for patients who respond to the anti-PD1 agent pembrolizumab. To explore this immune phenotype within and across tumor types, we applied the TIS algorithm to over 9000 tumor gene expression profiles downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). As expected based on prior evidence, tumors with known clinical sensitivity to anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) blockade had higher average TIS scores. Furthermore, TIS scores were more variable within than between tumor types, and within each tumor type a subset of patients with elevated scores was identifiable although with different prevalence associated with each tumor type, the latter consistent with the observed clinical responsiveness to anti PD-1 blockade. Notably, TIS scores only minimally correlated with mutation load in most tumors and ranking tumors by median TIS score showed differing association to clinical sensitivity to PD-1/PD-1 ligand 1 (PD-L1) blockade than ranking of the same tumors by mutation load. The expression patterns of the TIS algorithm genes were conserved across tumor types yet appeared to be minimally prognostic in most cancers, consistent with the TIS score serving as a pan-cancer measurement of the inflamed tumor phenotype. Characterization of the prevalence and variability of TIS will lead to increased understanding of the immune status of untreated tumors and may lead to improved indication selection for testing immunotherapy agents.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Rongze Lu
- 0000 0004 0572 4227grid.431072.3AbbVie Inc. Redwood City CA USA
| | - Josue Samayoa
- 0000 0004 0572 4227grid.431072.3AbbVie Inc. Redwood City CA USA
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14
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Rotondi M, Coperchini F, Latrofa F, Chiovato L. Role of Chemokines in Thyroid Cancer Microenvironment: Is CXCL8 the Main Player? Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2018; 9:314. [PMID: 29977225 PMCID: PMC6021500 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2018.00314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumor-related inflammation does influence the biological behavior of neoplastic cells and ultimately the patient's outcome. With specific regard to thyroid cancer, the issue of tumor-associated inflammation has been extensively studied and recently reviewed. However, the role of chemokines, which play a crucial role in determining the immuno-phenotype of tumor-related inflammation, was not addressed in previous reviews on the topic. Experimental evidence shows that thyroid cancer cells actively secrete a wide spectrum of chemokines and, at least for some of them, solid scientific data support a role for these immune-active molecules in the aggressive behavior of the tumor. Our proposal for a review article on chemokines and thyroid cancer stems from the notion that chemokines, besides having the ability to attract and maintain immune cells at the tumor site, also produce several pro-tumorigenic actions, which include proangiogenetic, cytoproliferative, and pro-metastatic effects. Studies taking into account the role of CCL15, C-X-C motif ligand 12, CXCL16, CXCL1, CCL20, and CCL2 in the context of thyroid cancer will be reviewed with particular emphasis on CXCL8. The reason for focusing on CXCL8 is that this chemokine is the most studied one in human malignancies, displaying multifaceted pro-tumorigenic effects. These include enhancement of tumor cells growth, metastatization, and angiogenesis overall contributing to the progression of several cancers including thyroid cancer. We aim at reviewing current knowledge on the (i) ability of both normal and tumor thyroid cells to secrete CXCL8; (ii) direct/indirect pro-tumorigenic effects of CXCL8 demonstrated by in vitro and in vivo studies specifically performed on thyroid cancer cells; and (iii) pharmacologic strategies proven to be effective for lowering CXCL8 secretion and/or its effects on thyroid cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Rotondi
- Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, ICS Maugeri I.R.C.C.S., Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Francesca Coperchini
- Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, ICS Maugeri I.R.C.C.S., Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Francesco Latrofa
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Luca Chiovato
- Unit of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, ICS Maugeri I.R.C.C.S., Laboratory for Endocrine Disruptors, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
- *Correspondence: Luca Chiovato,
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Lyons YA, Wu SY, Overwijk WW, Baggerly KA, Sood AK. Immune cell profiling in cancer: molecular approaches to cell-specific identification. NPJ Precis Oncol 2017; 1:26. [PMID: 29872708 PMCID: PMC5871917 DOI: 10.1038/s41698-017-0031-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2017] [Revised: 07/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The immune system has many important regulatory roles in cancer development and progression. Given the emergence of effective immune therapies against many cancers, reliable predictors of response are needed. One method of determining response is by evaluating immune cell populations from treated and untreated tumor samples. The amount of material obtained from tumor biopsies can be limited; therefore, gene-based or protein-based analyses may be attractive because they require minimal tissue. Cell-specific signatures are being analyzed with use of the latest technologies, including NanoString’s nCounter technology, intracellular staining flow cytometry, cytometry by time-of-flight, RNA-Seq, and barcoding antibody-based protein arrays. These signatures provide information about the contributions of specific types of immune cells to bulk tumor samples. To date, both tumor tissue and immune cells have been analyzed for molecular expression profiles that can assess genes and proteins that are specific to immune cells, yielding results of varying specificity. Here, we discuss the importance of profiling tumor tissue and immune cells to identify immune-cell-associated genes and proteins and specific gene profiles of immune cells. We also discuss the use of these signatures in cancer treatment and the challenges faced in molecular expression profiling of immune cell populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmin A Lyons
- 1Department of Gynecologic Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA
| | - Sherry Y Wu
- 1Department of Gynecologic Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA
| | - Willem W Overwijk
- 2Department of Melanoma Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA
| | - Keith A Baggerly
- 3Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA
| | - Anil K Sood
- 1Department of Gynecologic Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA.,4Center for RNA Interference and Non-Coding RNA, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA.,5Cancer Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, Texas 77030 USA
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16
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Cockburn JG, Hallett RM, Gillgrass AE, Dias KN, Whelan T, Levine MN, Hassell JA, Bane A. The effects of lymph node status on predicting outcome in ER+ /HER2- tamoxifen treated breast cancer patients using gene signatures. BMC Cancer 2016; 16:555. [PMID: 27469239 PMCID: PMC4964078 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-016-2501-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2014] [Accepted: 07/04/2016] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Lymph node (LN) status is the most important prognostic variable used to guide ER positive (+) breast cancer treatment. While a positive nodal status is traditionally associated with a poor prognosis, a subset of these patients respond well to treatment and achieve long-term survival. Several gene signatures have been established as a means of predicting outcome of breast cancer patients, but the development and indication for use of these assays varies. Here we compare the capacity of two approved gene signatures and a third novel signature to predict outcome in distinct LN negative (-) and LN+ populations. We also examine biological differences between tumours associated with LN- and LN+ disease. METHODS Gene expression data from publically available data sets was used to compare the ability of Oncotype DX and Prosigna to predict Distant Metastasis Free Survival (DMFS) using an in silico platform. A novel gene signature (Ellen) was developed by including patients with both LN- and LN+ disease and using Prediction Analysis of Microarrays (PAM) software. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) was used to determine biological pathways associated with patient outcome in both LN- and LN+ tumors. RESULTS The Oncotype DX gene signature, which only used LN- patients during development, significantly predicted outcome in LN- patients, but not LN+ patients. The Prosigna gene signature, which included both LN- and LN+ patients during development, predicted outcome in both LN- and LN+ patient groups. Ellen was also able to predict outcome in both LN- and LN+ patient groups. GSEA suggested that epigenetic modification may be related to poor outcome in LN- disease, whereas immune response may be related to good outcome in LN+ disease. CONCLUSIONS We demonstrate the importance of incorporating lymph node status during the development of prognostic gene signatures. Ellen may be a useful tool to predict outcome of patients regardless of lymph node status, or for those with unknown lymph node status. Finally we present candidate biological processes, unique to LN- and LN+ disease, that may indicate risk of relapse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica G. Cockburn
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Robin M. Hallett
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Centre for Functional Genomics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Amy E. Gillgrass
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Kay N. Dias
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
| | - T. Whelan
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
| | - M. N. Levine
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
| | - John A. Hassell
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Centre for Functional Genomics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Anita Bane
- Department of Oncology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
- Department of Pathology, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, Hamilton, Canada
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17
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Immunotherapy for castration-resistant prostate cancer: Progress and new paradigms. Urol Oncol 2015; 33:245-60. [PMID: 25575714 DOI: 10.1016/j.urolonc.2014.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2014] [Revised: 10/10/2014] [Accepted: 10/15/2014] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The approval of sipuleucel-T in conjunction with data from other immunotherapeutic trials for prostate cancer and other solid tumors demonstrates the potential of harnessing the patients' immune system for long-term survival. Thus, a range of therapeutic approaches are under evaluation. This review describes the rationale for immunotherapy for prostate cancer, summarizes the approaches under evaluation, and discusses sequencing options for immunotherapy in the current treatment paradigm. DESIGN References for this review were identified through searches of PubMed with the search terms "prostate cancer," "immune system," "vaccine," "immunotherapy," and "T cells." Articles were also identified through searches of the authors' own files. The final reference list was generated based on originality and relevance. RESULTS The immune system can recognize and respond to prostate tumor antigens, effected through tumor-associated antigens and tumor infiltration of immune effector cells. However, evidence also suggests that prostate tumors are adept at escaping immunological recognition, thus hypothesizing multiple therapeutic strategies. Therapeutic approaches could include vaccination and modulation of T-cell function via the blockade of checkpoint receptors such as cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 and programmed death 1. In phase III trials, sipuleucel-T improved overall survival for an M1 patient population with castration-resistant prostate cancer and ipilimumab also did so when given after radiotherapy in a subset of better risk patients. In randomized phase II trials, prostate-specific antigen-TRICOM improved overall survival and tasquinimod improved progression-free survival. CONCLUSION Although immunotherapy has the potential to affect advanced prostate cancer, additional research is needed to (1) identify predictive or surrogate markers of activity, (2) understand which agents are clinically effective alone or in combination with other therapies, and (3) define the optimal timing for an immunotherapy to achieve maximal benefit.
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18
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Abstract
Immune responses against thyroid carcinomas have long been demonstrated and associations between inflammatory microenvironment and thyroid carcinomas repeatedly reported. This scenario has prompted scientists throughout the world to unveil how the inflammatory microenvironment is established in thyroid tumors and what is its influence on the outcome of patients with thyroid carcinoma. Many studies have reported the role of evasion from the immune system in tumor progression and reinforced the weakness of the innate immune response toward thyroid cancer spread in advanced stages. Translational studies have provided evidence that an increased density of tumor-associated macrophages in poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) is associated with an aggressive phenotype at diagnosis and decreased cancer-related survival, whereas well-DTC microenvironment enriched with macrophages is correlated with improved disease-free survival. It is possible that these different results are related to different microenvironments. Several studies have provided evidence that patients whose tumors are not infiltrated by lymphocytes present a high recurrence rate, suggesting that the presence of lymphocytes in the tumor microenvironment may favor the prognosis of patients with thyroid carcinoma. However, the effect of lymphocytes and other immune cells on patient outcome seems to result from complex interactions between the tumor and immune system, and the molecular pattern of cytokines and chemokines helps to explain the involvement of the immune system in thyroid tumor progression. The inflammatory microenvironment may help to characterize aggressive tumors and to identify patients who would benefit from a more invasive approach, probably sparing the vast majority of patients with an indolent disease from unnecessary procedures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Leite Cunha
- Laboratory of Cancer Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas (FCM-Unicamp), Rua Tessália Vieira de Camargo 126, Barão Geraldo, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
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Salerno EP, Olson WC, McSkimming C, Shea S, Slingluff CL. T cells in the human metastatic melanoma microenvironment express site-specific homing receptors and retention integrins. Int J Cancer 2014; 134:563-74. [PMID: 23873187 DOI: 10.1002/ijc.28391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2012] [Accepted: 06/20/2013] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
T-cell infiltration into the metastatic melanoma microenvironment (MME) correlates with improved patient survival. However, diffuse infiltration into tumor occurs in only 8% of melanoma metastases. Little is known about mechanisms governing T-cell infiltration into human melanoma metastases or about how those mechanisms may be altered therapeutically. We hypothesized that T cells in the MME would be enriched for chemokine receptors CCR4, CCR5, CXCR3 and homing receptors relevant to the tissue site. Viably cryopreserved single cell suspensions from nineteen melanoma metastases representing three metastatic sites (tumor-infiltrated lymph node, skin and small bowel) were evaluated by multiparameter flow cytometry and compared to benign lymph nodes and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with Stage IIB-IV melanoma. T cells in the melanoma metastases contained large effector memory populations, high proportions of activated, moderately differentiated cells and few regulatory T cells. Site-specific homing was suggested in bowel, with high expression of CCR9. We neither encounter the anticipated enrichment of integrin α4β7 in bowel, cutaneous leukocyte antigen (CLA) in skin, nor integrin α4β1 or receptor CXCR3 in metastatic sites. Retention integrins αEβ7, α1β1 and α2β1 were significantly elevated in metastases. These data suggest limited tissue site-specific homing to human melanoma metastases, but a significant role for retention integrins in maintaining intratumoral T cells. Our findings also raise the possibility that T-cell homing, infiltration, and retention in melanoma metastases may be increased by increasing expression of ligands for CLA, α4β1 and CXCR3 on intratumoral endothelium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elise P Salerno
- Division of Surgical Oncology, Department of Surgery, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
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20
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Snyder A, Tepper JE, Slovin SF. Perspectives on immunotherapy in prostate cancer and solid tumors: where is the future? Semin Oncol 2013; 40:347-60. [PMID: 23806499 DOI: 10.1053/j.seminoncol.2013.04.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
The goals of any cancer therapy are to improve disease control, palliate pain and improve overall survival. We are fortunate to have in our cancer armamentarium two new immune-directed therapies which not only impact on disease control but also on overall survival. The first, sipuleucel-T, a cellular-based vaccine, was approved for prostate cancer and was shown to be safe with minimal toxicity. The second, ipilimumab, a monoclonal antibody directed to an immunologic checkpoint molecule, showed a survival benefit in patients with advanced melanoma. Benefit appeared to correlate in some cases with the development of autoimmune events, signaling that the immune system is in overdrive against the cancer. Where we are and where we will likely go are the topics to be discussed in this review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Snyder
- Genitourinary Oncology Service, Sidney Kimmel Center for Prostate and Urologic Cancers, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA
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21
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Morse MA, Osada T, Hobeika A, Patel S, Lyerly HK. Biomarkers and correlative endpoints for immunotherapy trials. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book 2013:0011300287. [PMID: 23714525 DOI: 10.14694/edbook_am.2013.33.e287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Immunotherapies for lung cancer are reaching phase III clinical trial, but the ultimate success likely will depend on developing biomarkers to guide development and choosing patient populations most likely to benefit. Because the immune response to cancer involves multiple cell types and cytokines, some spatially and temporally separated, it is likely that multiple biomarkers will be required to fully characterize efficacy of the vaccine and predict eventual benefit. Peripheral blood markers of response, such as the ELISPOT assay and cytokine flow cytometry analyses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells following immunotherapy, remain the standard approach, but it is increasingly important to obtain tissue to study the immune response at the site of the tumor. Earlier clinical endpoints such as response rate and progression-free survival do not correlate with overall survival demonstrated for some immunotherapies, suggesting the need to develop other intermediary clinical endpoints. Insofar as all these biomarkers and surrogate endpoints are relevant in multiple malignancies, it may be possible to extrapolate findings to immunotherapy of lung cancer.
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Manjili MH, Najarian K, Wang XY. Signatures of tumor-immune interactions as biomarkers for breast cancer prognosis. Future Oncol 2012; 8:703-11. [PMID: 22764768 DOI: 10.2217/fon.12.57] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer mortality is usually due to distant recurrence of cancer at an advanced stage of the disease rather than from primary cancer. Therefore, prediction of breast cancer recurrence at the time of diagnosis could lead to advances in personalized treatment of cancer patients in order to prevent risk of recurrence. Two prognostic biomarkers that are currently being used in clinical practice are a 70-gene MammaPrint signature and a 21-gene Oncotype DX panel. These assays generate relative risks of recurrence, but they do not provide a 'yes' or 'no' answer about recurrence in a given patient. These tests include genes that are involved in the cell cycle, invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis related to breast cancer. Emerging evidence suggests that a signature of genes involved in tumor-immune interactions may provide a more accurate prognostic tool. This paper reviews recent advances in the discovery of prognostic biomarkers for breast cancer patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masoud H Manjili
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Massey Cancer Center, Richmond, VA 23298, USA.
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23
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Immune microenvironment in tumor progression: characteristics and challenges for therapy. JOURNAL OF ONCOLOGY 2012; 2012:608406. [PMID: 22927846 PMCID: PMC3423944 DOI: 10.1155/2012/608406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2012] [Revised: 06/18/2012] [Accepted: 07/02/2012] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
The tumor microenvironment plays a critical role in cancer development, progression, and control. The molecular and cellular nature of the tumor immune microenvironment influences disease outcome by altering the balance of suppressive versus cytotoxic responses in the vicinity of the tumor. Recent developments in systems biology have improved our understanding of the complex interactions between tumors and their immunological microenvironment in various human cancers. Effective tumor surveillance by the host immune system protects against disease, but chronic inflammation and tumor “immunoediting” have also been implicated in disease development and progression. Accordingly, reactivation and maintenance of appropriate antitumor responses within the tumor microenvironment correlate with a good prognosis in cancer patients. Improved understanding of the factors that shape the tumor microenvironment will be critical for the development of effective future strategies for disease management. The manipulation of these microenvironmental factors is already emerging as a promising tool for novel cancer treatments. In this paper, we summarize the various roles of the tumor microenvironment in cancer, focusing on immunological mediators of tumor progression and control, as well as the significant challenges for future therapies.
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Morse MD, McNeel DG. T cells localized to the androgen-deprived prostate are TH1 and TH17 biased. Prostate 2012; 72:1239-47. [PMID: 22213030 PMCID: PMC3673717 DOI: 10.1002/pros.22476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2011] [Accepted: 11/28/2011] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND T cells infiltrate the prostates of prostate cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant androgen deprivation. These prostate-infiltrating T cells have an oligoclonal phenotype, suggesting the development of an antigen-specific T-cell response. We hypothesized that androgen deprivation might elicit a prostate tissue-specific T-cell response that could potentially be combined with other immune-active therapies, and consequently sought to investigate the nature and timing of this T-cell response following castration. METHODS We investigated the phenotype and cytokine expression of T cells at various time points in the prostates of Lewis rats following surgical castration, and used adoptive transfer of prostate-infiltrating lymphocytes (PILs) to determine whether the infiltration by T cells was mediated by effects of castration on the prostate or lymphocytes. RESULTS Prostate T-cell infiltration shortly after castration was T(H) 1 biased up to approximately 30 days, followed by a predominance of T(H) 17-type cells, which persisted until at least 90 days post castration. PILs from sham-treated or castrate rats localized to the prostates of castrate animals. CONCLUSIONS These observations suggest castration elicits a time-dependent prostate-specific T-cell infiltration, and this infiltration is likely mediated by effects of castration on prostate tissue rather than T-cells. These findings have implications for the timing of immunotherapies combined with androgen deprivation as treatments for prostate cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew D. Morse
- Department of Cancer Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison
- Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison
| | - Douglas G. McNeel
- Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison
- To whom correspondence should be addressed: 7007 Wisconsin Institutes of Medical Research, 1111 Highland Avenue, Madison, WI 53705. Tel: (608) 265-8131 Fax: (608) 265-0614
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25
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Shaikhibrahim Z, Lindstrot A, Buettner R, Wernert N. Regulation of prostate cancer immunity-related genes in PC3 prostate cancer cells by ETS-1. Oncol Lett 2012; 3:513-516. [PMID: 22740941 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2011.509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2011] [Accepted: 11/21/2011] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most prevalent forms of cancer affecting males worldwide, and knowledge of the immune defenses involved in PCa remains incomplete. Since the identification of immunity-related genes may have enormous implications for the understanding of PCa immunology, we recently reported the identification of immunity-related genes in PCa tissues and found potential binding sites for the ETS family prototype, ETS-1, in the majority of genes identified. Therefore, as a continuation of our previous study, we investigated whether ETS-1 regulates these genes in an in vitro PCa cell line model, PC3 cells. We specifically blocked ETS-1 in PC3 cells by transfection with an ETS-1 inverse antisense expression vector or a mock control vector. We then assessed the effect of the blockade on the expression of the recently identified PCa immunity-related genes using a comprehensive oligo gene expression microarray analysis. The results showed that ETS-1 is involved in the activation or repression of the recently identified immunity-related genes in PCa. These findings provide insights into the regulation of immunity-related genes in PCa, and emphasize the importance of ETS-1 in prostate cancer immunology.
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Bontempi G, Haibe-Kains B, Desmedt C, Sotiriou C, Quackenbush J. Multiple-input multiple-output causal strategies for gene selection. BMC Bioinformatics 2011; 12:458. [PMID: 22118187 PMCID: PMC3323860 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2105-12-458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2011] [Accepted: 11/25/2011] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Traditional strategies for selecting variables in high dimensional classification problems aim to find sets of maximally relevant variables able to explain the target variations. If these techniques may be effective in generalization accuracy they often do not reveal direct causes. The latter is essentially related to the fact that high correlation (or relevance) does not imply causation. In this study, we show how to efficiently incorporate causal information into gene selection by moving from a single-input single-output to a multiple-input multiple-output setting. RESULTS We show in synthetic case study that a better prioritization of causal variables can be obtained by considering a relevance score which incorporates a causal term. In addition we show, in a meta-analysis study of six publicly available breast cancer microarray datasets, that the improvement occurs also in terms of accuracy. The biological interpretation of the results confirms the potential of a causal approach to gene selection. CONCLUSIONS Integrating causal information into gene selection algorithms is effective both in terms of prediction accuracy and biological interpretation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianluca Bontempi
- Machine Learning Group, Computer Science Department, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium.
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27
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Ascierto ML, Giorgi VD, Liu Q, Bedognetti D, Spivey TL, Murtas D, Uccellini L, Ayotte BD, Stroncek DF, Chouchane L, Manjili MH, Wang E, Marincola FM. An immunologic portrait of cancer. J Transl Med 2011; 9:146. [PMID: 21875439 PMCID: PMC3175185 DOI: 10.1186/1479-5876-9-146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2011] [Accepted: 08/29/2011] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The advent of high-throughput technology challenges the traditional histopathological classification of cancer, and proposes new taxonomies derived from global transcriptional patterns. Although most of these molecular re-classifications did not endure the test of time, they provided bulk of new information that can reframe our understanding of human cancer biology. Here, we focus on an immunologic interpretation of cancer that segregates oncogenic processes independent from their tissue derivation into at least two categories of which one bears the footprints of immune activation. Several observations describe a cancer phenotype where the expression of interferon stimulated genes and immune effector mechanisms reflect patterns commonly observed during the inflammatory response against pathogens, which leads to elimination of infected cells. As these signatures are observed in growing cancers, they are not sufficient to entirely clear the organism of neoplastic cells but they sustain, as in chronic infections, a self-perpetuating inflammatory process. Yet, several studies determined an association between this inflammatory status and a favorable natural history of the disease or a better responsiveness to cancer immune therapy. Moreover, these signatures overlap with those observed during immune-mediated cancer rejection and, more broadly, immune-mediated tissue-specific destruction in other immune pathologies. Thus, a discussion concerning this cancer phenotype is warranted as it remains unknown why it occurs in immune competent hosts. It also remains uncertain whether a genetically determined response of the host to its own cancer, the genetic makeup of the neoplastic process or a combination of both drives the inflammatory process. Here we reflect on commonalities and discrepancies among studies and on the genetic or somatic conditions that may cause this schism in cancer behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Libera Ascierto
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy
- Center of Excellence for Biomedical Research (CEBR), Genoa, Italy
| | - Valeria De Giorgi
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Qiuzhen Liu
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Davide Bedognetti
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
- Center of Excellence for Biomedical Research (CEBR), Genoa, Italy
- Department of Oncology, Biology and Genetics and National Cancer Research Institute of Genoa, Italy
| | - Tara L Spivey
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Daniela Murtas
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Lorenzo Uccellini
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Ben D Ayotte
- Department of Biology, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI 49855,USA
| | - David F Stroncek
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Lotfi Chouchane
- Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Education City, Doha Qatar Box 24144
| | - Masoud H Manjili
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center, Richmond, VA 23298, USA
| | - Ena Wang
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
| | - Francesco M Marincola
- Infectious Disease and Immunogenetics Section (IDIS), Department of Transfusion Medicine, Clinical Center and Trans-NIH Center for Human Immunology (CHI), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, USA
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Zitvogel L, Kepp O, Kroemer G. Immune parameters affecting the efficacy of chemotherapeutic regimens. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 2011; 8:151-60. [PMID: 21364688 DOI: 10.1038/nrclinonc.2010.223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 498] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The outcome of chemotherapy can be influenced by the host immune system at multiple levels. Chemotherapy can kill cancer cells by causing them to elicit an immune response or alternatively, by increasing their susceptibility to immune attack. In addition, chemotherapy can stimulate anticancer immune effectors either in a direct fashion or by subverting immunosuppressive mechanisms. Beyond cancer-cell-intrinsic factors that determine the cytotoxic or cytostatic response, as well as the potential immunogenicity of tumor cells, the functional state of the host immune system has a major prognostic and predictive impact on the fate of cancer patients treated with conventional or targeted chemotherapies. In this Review, we surmise that immune-relevant biomarkers may guide personalized therapeutic interventions including compensatory measures to restore or improve anticancer immune responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurence Zitvogel
- INSERM U1015, Institut Gustave Roussy, 39 rue Camille Desmoulins, F-94805 Villejuif, France
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29
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Zitvogel L, Kepp O, Aymeric L, Ma Y, Locher C, Delahaye NF, André F, Kroemer G. Integration of Host-Related Signatures with Cancer Cell–Derived Predictors for the Optimal Management of Anticancer Chemotherapy. Cancer Res 2010; 70:9538-43. [DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-10-1003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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30
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Vaccines and immunotherapeutics for the treatment of malignant disease. Clin Dev Immunol 2010; 2010:697158. [PMID: 20936120 PMCID: PMC2948924 DOI: 10.1155/2010/697158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2010] [Accepted: 08/25/2010] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The employment of the immune system to treat malignant disease represents an active area of biomedical research. The specificity of the immune response and potential for establishing long-term tumor immunity compels researchers to continue investigations into immunotherapeutic approaches for cancer. A number of immunotherapeutic strategies have arisen for the treatment of malignant disease, including various vaccination schemes, cytokine therapy, adoptive cellular therapy, and monoclonal antibody therapy. This paper describes each of these strategies and discusses some of the associated successes and limitations. Emphasis is placed on the integration of techniques to promote optimal scenarios for eliminating cancer.
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