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Leveraging macrophages for cancer theranostics

Lu Liu1, Hongjun Li2, Jinqiang Wang3

  • 1CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology of China, Beijing 100190, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Department of Bioengineering and California NanoSystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States.

Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews
|February 10, 2022
PubMed

As fundamental immune cells in innate and adaptive immunity, macrophages engage in a double-edged relationship with cancer. Dissecting the character of macrophages in cancer development facilitates the emergence of macrophages-based new strategies that encompass macrophages as theranostic targets/tools of interest for treating cancer. Herein, we provide a concise overview of the mixed roles of macrophages in cancer pathogenesis and invasion as a foundation for the review discussions. We survey the latest progress on macrophage-based cancer theranostic strategies, emphasizing two major strategies, including targeting the endogenous tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and engineering the adoptive macrophages to reverse the immunosuppressive environment and augment the cancer theranostic efficacy. We also discuss and provide insights on the major challenges along with exciting opportunities for the future of macrophage-based cancer theranostic approaches.

Keywords:
Cancer theranosticsCell therapyDrug deliveryImmunotherapyMacrophage

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