MINI REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1610998
This article is part of the Research TopicHarnessing Molecular Insights for Enhanced Drug Sensitivity and Immunotherapy in CancerView all 36 articles
Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes in NSCLC: From Immune Surveillance to Immunotherapy
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Intensive Care Unit, Sichuan Cancer Hospital&Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China., Chengdu, China
- 2Department of General Medicine, MianYang Cancer Hospital, Mianyang, China, Mianyang, China
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Lung cancer, predominantly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), remains a principal driver of cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. Despite advancements in surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeted treatments, outcomes remain poor in advanced NSCLC. The tumor microenvironment (TME) exerts a critical influence on therapy responses. Within the TME, immune cells such as T and B lymphocytes, dendritic cells, myeloid-derived suppressor cells, tumor-associated macrophages, neutrophils, and natural killer cells can drive both pro-and anti-tumor processes. This review integrates their classification, phenotypic plasticity, and roles in NSCLC, highlighting key preclinical and clinical evidence while discussing pathogenesis, prognostic significance, and therapeutic potential. We also summarize the current immunotherapeutic strategies for advanced NSCLC, including first-or second-line regimens with immune checkpoint inhibitors alone or combined with chemotherapy, anti-angiogenic agents, or additional checkpoint inhibitors, and future directions. By elucidating the interplay between the NSCLC immune microenvironment and emerging immunotherapies, this review emphasizes the need for novel combination regimens and robust predictive biomarkers to improve clinical outcomes and extend survival in advanced NSCLC.
Keywords: lung cancer, Tumor Microenvironment, immune cells, Immunotherapy, CD8 + T cell, B cell
Received: 13 Apr 2025; Accepted: 11 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Xue, Fan, Li, Zhao, Zhang, Zhao and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Zhenjun Liu, Department of Intensive Care Unit, Sichuan Cancer Hospital&Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China., Chengdu, China
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