Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Dec 29;41(1):362.
doi: 10.1186/s13046-022-02579-9.

Insights into the tumor microenvironment of B cell lymphoma

Wern Lynn Ng  1 , Stephen M Ansell  1 , Patrizia Mondello  2
Affiliations
Review

Insights into the tumor microenvironment of B cell lymphoma

Wern Lynn Ng et al. J Exp Clin Cancer Res. .

Abstract

The standard therapies in lymphoma have predominantly focused on targeting tumor cells with less of a focus on the tumor microenvironment (TME), which plays a critical role in favoring tumor growth and survival. Such an approach may result in increasingly refractory disease with progressively reduced responses to subsequent treatments. To overcome this hurdle, targeting the TME has emerged as a new therapeutic strategy. The TME consists of T and B lymphocytes, tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and other components. Understanding the TME can lead to a comprehensive approach to managing lymphoma, resulting in therapeutic strategies that target not only cancer cells, but also the supportive environment and thereby ultimately improve survival of lymphoma patients. Here, we review the normal function of different components of the TME, the impact of their aberrant behavior in B cell lymphoma and the current TME-direct therapeutic avenues.

Keywords: B-cell lymphoma; Cancer-associated fibroblasts; Myeloid-derived suppressor cells; T cells; T follicular helper cells; T regulatory cells; Tumor microenvironment; Tumor-associated macrophages.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no relevant affiliation or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Role of T follicular helper (Tfh) cells in the normal germinal center and in lymphomagenesis
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Drugs targeting T regulatory (Treg) cells
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Macrophage polarization and specific cytokines release of M1 and M2 macrophages
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Myeloid differentiation in physiologic and pathologic conditions
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Functions of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs)
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Role of natural killer (NK) cells in physiologic and pathologic conditions
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Mesin L, Ersching J, Victora GD. Germinal center B cell dynamics. Immunity. 2016;45:471–482. doi: 10.1016/j.immuni.2016.09.001. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Basso K, Dalla-Favera R. Germinal centres and B cell lymphomagenesis. Nat Rev Immunol. 2015;15:172–184. doi: 10.1038/nri3814. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Alizadeh AA, Eisen MB, Davis RE, Ma C, Lossos IS, Rosenwald A, et al. Distinct types of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma identified by gene expression profiling. Nature. 2000;403:503–511. doi: 10.1038/35000501. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chapuy B, Stewart C, Dunford AJ, Kim J, Kamburov A, Redd RA, et al. Molecular subtypes of diffuse large B cell lymphoma are associated with distinct pathogenic mechanisms and outcomes. Nat Med. 2018;24:679–690. doi: 10.1038/s41591-018-0016-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Schmitz R, Wright GW, Huang DW, Johnson CA, Phelan JD, Wang JQ, et al. Genetics and pathogenesis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. N Engl J Med. 2018;378:1396–1407. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1801445. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources