Lopes-Santos G, Tjioe KC, Magalhaes MADO, Oliveira DT. The role of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor in head and neck cancer.
Arch Oral Biol 2023;
147:105641. [PMID:
36753900 DOI:
10.1016/j.archoralbio.2023.105641]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Revised: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
To review the molecular mechanisms and biological roles of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, highlighting its potential clinical applications.
DESIGN
The search terms "granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor", "GM-CSF", "CSF2″ and "head and neck squamous cell carcinoma" or "head and neck cancer" were queried in the PubMed/MEDLINE and Scopus databases.
RESULTS
Despite of being a widely expressed cytokine, the number of studies investigating the specific roles of GM-CSF in head and neck cancer was limited. Most of them investigated GM-CSF in conjunction with other cytokines. When studied alone, conflicting findings were observed in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. GM-CSF has been shown to induce angiogenesis and local tumor invasion. Additionally, it has also been implicated in immune evasion. On the other hand, GM-CSF stimulated the differentiation of dendritic cells, which are responsible for presenting tumor antigens, and for the regulation of T cell function. Even with these paradoxical effects, there are few studies investigating the potential of GM-CSF as adjuvant therapy in head and neck cancer.
CONCLUSION
The effects of GM-CSF in head and neck cancer may be pro- or antitumor. Understanding how one arm and not the other is activated is essential to assess the applicability and the safety of this cytokine as a therapeutic agent.
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