Radiotherapy: An immune response modifier for immuno-oncology

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Immunology
• Radiotherapy

Background:

• Radiotherapy's potential to enhance tumor antigenicity and adjuvanticity for immuno-oncology is of significant interest.
• However, radiotherapy induces complex host responses, including immunosuppressive signals, hindering clinical translation.
• Deciphering these molecular and cellular mechanisms is crucial for effective combination therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the pro-inflammatory and immunosuppressive mechanisms triggered by radiotherapy.
• To discuss how radiation-induced immunostimulatory effects can be leveraged in cancer immunotherapy.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of studies investigating radiotherapy's impact on anti-tumor immunity.
• Analysis of molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying radiotherapy-induced immune responses.
• Exploration of strategies to exploit radiotherapy's immunostimulatory effects.

Main Results:

• Radiotherapy elicits both pro-inflammatory and immunosuppressive host responses.
• These responses are influenced by tumor biology and immune cell infiltration.
• The interplay of these responses affects antigen-specific T cell killing.

Conclusions:

• Radiotherapy's complex immune effects necessitate a deeper understanding for successful clinical application.
• Exploiting radiation-induced immunostimulatory mechanisms holds promise for reactivating host immunity in cancer therapy.
• Further research is needed to optimize radiotherapy in combination with immunotherapy.