Recent Updates in Cancer Immunotherapy / 대한이비인후과학회지

ABSTRACT

Immune system is believed to play an important role in cancer initiation as well as its progression, as evidenced by many studies revealing suppressed, defective anti-tumor immunity in cancer patients. Modulating various components in immune surveillance, such as cytokine, antigen-presenting cells, or B/T lymphocytes, to control and eradicate cancer has been an attractive theme, however, preclinical/clinical trials have not been successful enough to introduce immunotherapy into practice. Recently, enthusiasm on cancer immunotherapy has been revived mostly due to 1) growing body of data on the mechanism of immune checkpoint in cancer, and 2) promising studies performed in advanced, solid cancer patients treated with blocking antibodies targeting cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 or programmed cell death protein-1 pathways. The immune checkpoints blockade is likely to be a novel armament in cancer management as the outcomes of ongoing clinical trials are released in future.