REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
This article is part of the Research TopicCancer prevention and therapy using herbal formulations of natural immune modulatorsView all 5 articles
Traditional Chinese Medicine as Potential Adjuvants for Tumor Vaccines: A Review of Types, Mechanisms, and Forms
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guang’anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
- 2China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Guang'anmen Hospital, Beijing, China
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Therapeutic cancer vaccines are increasingly recognized as a highly promising approach for tumor treatment; however, their clinical efficacy critically depends on the rational design of vaccine adjuvants. Natural compounds derived from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) have emerged as attractive candidates for next-generation tumor vaccine adjuvants. In this review, we systematically summarize the chemical constituents of TCM-derived adjuvants reported in current research and categorize their mechanisms of action into four functional modalities: (i) immunostimulatory adjuvants that activate innate immune pathways; (ii) delivery-enhancing systems that improve antigen stability and facilitate targeting to antigen-presenting cells; (iii) integrated platforms that combine both immunostimulatory and delivery-enhancing functions; and (iv) other mechanisms involving non-canonical immunomodulatory activities. We further discuss current challenges in standardization, regulatory approval, and clinical translation, offering a roadmap for harnessing the potential of TCM in the rational design of cancer vaccines.
Keywords: Traditional Chinese Medicine, adjuvant, tumor vaccines, cold tumors, Immunotherapy
Received: 08 Jul 2025; Accepted: 25 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Cui, Gong, Chang, LU, Zhao, Zhuo and Zhang. 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: WENPING LU
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