Prospects for targeting PD-1 and PD-L1 in various tumor types

Immune checkpoints, such as programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) or its receptor, programmed death 1 (PD-1), appear to be Achilles' heels for multiple tumor types. PD-L1 not only provides immune escape for tumor cells but also turns on the apoptosis switch on activated T cells. Therapies that block this interaction have demonstrated promising clinical activity in several tumor types. In this review, we will discuss the current status of several anti-PD-1 and anti-PD-L1 antibodies in clinical development and their direction for the future.