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Review
. 2021 Sep;22(3):655.
doi: 10.3892/ol.2021.12916. Epub 2021 Jul 9.

Cancer immunotherapy: A comprehensive appraisal of its modes of application

Mira Hoteit  1 , Zeina Oneissi  1 , Ranim Reda  1 , Fadi Wakim  1 , Amar Zaidan  1 , Mohammad Farran  1 , Elie Abi-Khalil  1 , Mirvat El-Sibai  1
Affiliations
Review

Cancer immunotherapy: A comprehensive appraisal of its modes of application

Mira Hoteit et al. Oncol Lett. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

Conventional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy have reached their therapeutic potential, leaving a gap for developing more effective cancer therapeutics. Cancer cells evade the immune system using various mechanisms of immune tolerance, underlying the potential impact of immunotherapy in the treatment of cancer. Immunotherapy includes several approaches such as activating the immune system in a cytokine-dependent manner, manipulating the feedback mechanisms involved in the immune response, enhancing the immune response via lymphocyte expansion and using cancer vaccines to elicit long-lasting, robust responses. These techniques can be used as monotherapies or combination therapies. The present review describes the immune-based mechanisms involved in tumor cell proliferation and maintenance and the rationale underlying various treatment methods. In addition, the present review provides insight into the potential of immunotherapy used alone or in combination with various types of therapeutics.

Keywords: adoptive cell transfer; cytokines; immune checkpoint inhibitors; monoclonal antibodies; vaccines.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A diagram illustrating the immunological mechanisms of an mAb via activating antibody-dependenT cellular cytotoxicity, blocking growth factor receptors and activating complement-dependent cytotoxicity by complement activation via the membrane attack complex. Figure is based on information from Chung et al (120). MAC, membrane attack complex; NK, natural killer.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Department of Natural Sciences at the School of Arts and Science at the Lebanese American University.