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A Bioluminescent and Fluorescent Orthotopic Syngeneic Murine Model of Androgen-dependent and Castration-resistant Prostate Cancer
Published on: March 6, 2018
Immunotherapy for Metastatic Prostate Cancer: Current and Emerging Treatment Options
Dimple Chakravarty1, Li Huang2, Matthew Kahn3
1Department of Urology and the Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Abstract:
The advent of immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment. Prostate cancer has an immunosuppressive microenvironment and a low tumor mutation burden, resulting in low neoantigen expression. The consensus was that immunotherapy would be less effective in prostate cancer. However, recent studies have reported that prostate cancer does have a high number of DNA damage and repair gene defects. Immunotherapies that have been tested in prostate cancer so far have been mainly vaccines and checkpoint inhibitors. A combination of genomically targeted therapies, with approaches to alleviate immune response and thereby make the tumor microenvironment immunologically hot, is promising.
Insights
Immunotherapy shows promise for prostate cancer, despite initial concerns. Targeting DNA repair defects and combining therapies may overcome the tumor
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Immunology
- Genetics
Background:
- Immunotherapy has transformed cancer care but faces challenges in prostate cancer due to its immunosuppressive microenvironment and low neoantigen expression.
- Prostate cancer was previously considered less responsive to immunotherapy, based on its low tumor mutation burden.
- Recent findings highlight significant DNA damage and repair gene defects in prostate cancer, suggesting potential therapeutic vulnerabilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the potential of immunotherapy in prostate cancer.
- To investigate the role of DNA damage and repair gene defects in prostate cancer immunogenicity.
- To identify promising therapeutic strategies combining targeted therapies and immune-modulating approaches.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent studies on prostate cancer immunotherapy.
- Analysis of genetic data related to DNA damage and repair pathways in prostate cancer.
- Evaluation of current and emerging immunotherapy approaches, including vaccines and checkpoint inhibitors.
Main Results:
- Prostate cancer exhibits a high number of DNA damage and repair gene defects.
- Despite initial challenges, immunotherapy approaches like vaccines and checkpoint inhibitors have been tested.
- Genomic alterations suggest potential for novel therapeutic interventions.
Conclusions:
- Prostate cancer's genetic landscape offers opportunities for immunotherapy.
- Combining genomically targeted therapies with immune-modulating strategies is a promising direction.
- Strategies to 'heat' the tumor microenvironment are crucial for enhancing immunotherapy efficacy in prostate cancer.
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