Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 15, 2025
Selective Cell Elimination from Mixed 3D Culture Using a Near Infrared Photoimmunotherapy Technique
Published on: March 14, 2016
Photoimmunotherapy for cancer treatment based on organic small molecules: Recent strategies and future directions
Deming Zhao1, Xin Wen1, Jiani Wu1
1School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China.
Abstract:
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is considered as a promising anticancer approach, owning to its high efficiency and spatiotemporal selectivity. Ample evidence indicated that PDT can trigger immunogenic cell death by releasing antigens that activate immune cells to promote anti-tumor immunity. Nevertheless, the inherent nature of tumors and their complex heterogeneity often limits the efficiency of PDT, which can be overcome with a novel strategy of photo-immunotherapy (PIT) strategy. By exploring the principles of PDT induction and ICD enhancement, combined with other therapies such as chemotherapy or immune checkpoint blockade, the tailored solutions can be designed to address specific challenges of drug resistance, hypoxic conditions, and tumor immunosuppressive microenvironments (TIMEs), which enables targeted enhancement of systemic immunity to address most distant and recurrent cancers. The present article summarizes the specific strategies of PIT and discusses recent existing limitations. More importantly, we anticipate that the perspectives presented herein will help address the clinical translation challenges associated with PIT.
Insights
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) can be enhanced by photo-immunotherapy (PIT) strategies to overcome tumor limitations and boost anti-tumor immunity. PIT combines PDT with other treatments to improve systemic immunity against diverse cancers.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Immunology
- Photochemistry
Background:
- Photodynamic therapy (PDT) shows promise in cancer treatment due to its selectivity and ability to induce immunogenic cell death (ICD).
- Tumor heterogeneity and immunosuppressive microenvironments (TIMEs) often limit the efficacy of conventional PDT.
- PDT activates immune cells by releasing tumor antigens, promoting anti-tumor immunity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore novel photo-immunotherapy (PIT) strategies for enhancing PDT efficacy.
- To address challenges like drug resistance, hypoxia, and TIMEs in cancer treatment.
- To provide perspectives on overcoming clinical translation barriers for PIT.
Main Methods:
- Investigating principles of PDT induction and ICD enhancement.
- Combining PDT with other therapies like chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade.
- Analyzing strategies to overcome tumor resistance and immunosuppression.
Main Results:
- PIT strategies can be tailored to address specific tumor challenges, enhancing systemic anti-tumor immunity.
- Combining PDT with other modalities shows potential for treating distant and recurrent cancers.
- The reviewed strategies aim to improve treatment outcomes for various cancers.
Conclusions:
- Photo-immunotherapy (PIT) offers a promising approach to enhance photodynamic therapy (PDT) for cancer treatment.
- Addressing tumor heterogeneity and immunosuppression is crucial for effective PIT.
- Further research and clinical translation efforts are needed to realize the full potential of PIT.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:27Tumor Immunotherapy
02:57Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
01:30Cancer Vaccines
Cancer vaccines come in two categories: preventive (prophylactic) and treatment (active). Preventive vaccines, such as the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, protect against viruses that cause certain...
02:49Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
02:50Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...
01:27Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response
Immunological surveillance is the ability of immune cells to monitor and eliminate infected cells with intracellular pathogens, neoplastically transformed cells, and cells with non-self antigens. Cytotoxic T cells and NK...