EDITORIAL article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
This article is part of the Research TopicTargeting cancer-associated fibroblasts: Disrupting immune evasion and therapy resistanceView all 10 articles
Editorial: Targeting Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts: Disrupting Immune Evasion and Therapy Resistance
Provisionally accepted
- 1Nanjing Zijin Hospital, Nanjing, China
- 2BenQ Medical Center, Nanjing, China
- 3The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Mental Health Institute, Changsha, China
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The tumor microenvironment (TME) is a complex ecosystem that plays a critical role in cancer progression and therapeutic response (1). Within this network, cancerassociated fibroblasts (CAFs) have emerged as master regulators, and they critically shape an immunosuppressive and therapy-resistant niche in TME (2). In the past, CAFs In conclusion, the collective evidence from these nine articles convincingly establishes CAFs as pivotal regulators of immune evasion and therapy resistance across multiple cancer types. Targeting CAFswhether through depletion, reprogramming, or disruption of their signaling networks-holds great promise for enhancing the efficacy of existing therapies, particularly immunotherapies. However, achieving success will necessitate a thorough grasp of CAF biology, reliable biomarkers, and innovative combination strategies (5). As we move forward, a multidisciplinary approach that integrates stromal targeting with immune modulation and precision oncology will be essential to disrupt the resilient CAF-TME axis and improve outcomes for cancer patients. TW, QJ, and ZZ: Writing -original draft. QL: Writing -review & editing.
Keywords: cancer-associate fibroblasts, Immune Evasion, therapy resistance, tumor micro environment (TME), Extracellular Matrix, targeted therapy
Received: 20 Oct 2025; Accepted: 31 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Ju, Zhou and Lu. 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: Qiong Lu, christy_luq@csu.edu.cn
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