Immunotherapy is the 4th column of cancer therapy, but is often applied for disease control after the failure of multiple lines of conventional therapy, which can have a long term impact on immunological fitness and clinical response. Similarly, patients with advanced stage cancer exhibit significant immune dysfunction driven by the cancer microenvironment. The immunological impact of the increased use of targeted small molecule inhibitors, immunomodulatory drugs and immunotherapy based anti-cancer therapies remains an evolving field.
From the long-standing use of monoclonal antibodies to newly developed bi-specific antibodies and adoptive cellular therapies (e.g. allogeneic/autologous CAR-T, CAR-NKs etc), the functional status of patients immunity - and in particular T cell fitness- at the time of treatment is becoming an increasingly appreciated determinant of therapeutic success. Understanding immune status before embarking on immunotherapy and/or how that immune status may be rescued by the application of novel therapies is becoming increasingly important in the personalized approach to the treatment of cancer.
We are requesting Review articles and Original Research articles that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:
1. Exploring the effect of disease and conventional and emerging therapies on T cell function
2. Determine how previous therapies impact on response to subsequent immunotherapy
3. Identify treatment strategies that preserve or improve T cell function to facilitate improved responses to emerging immunotherapies
4. Identify biomarkers of T cell function that predict for the successful application of immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is the 4th column of cancer therapy, but is often applied for disease control after the failure of multiple lines of conventional therapy, which can have a long term impact on immunological fitness and clinical response. Similarly, patients with advanced stage cancer exhibit significant immune dysfunction driven by the cancer microenvironment. The immunological impact of the increased use of targeted small molecule inhibitors, immunomodulatory drugs and immunotherapy based anti-cancer therapies remains an evolving field.
From the long-standing use of monoclonal antibodies to newly developed bi-specific antibodies and adoptive cellular therapies (e.g. allogeneic/autologous CAR-T, CAR-NKs etc), the functional status of patients immunity - and in particular T cell fitness- at the time of treatment is becoming an increasingly appreciated determinant of therapeutic success. Understanding immune status before embarking on immunotherapy and/or how that immune status may be rescued by the application of novel therapies is becoming increasingly important in the personalized approach to the treatment of cancer.
We are requesting Review articles and Original Research articles that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:
1. Exploring the effect of disease and conventional and emerging therapies on T cell function
2. Determine how previous therapies impact on response to subsequent immunotherapy
3. Identify treatment strategies that preserve or improve T cell function to facilitate improved responses to emerging immunotherapies
4. Identify biomarkers of T cell function that predict for the successful application of immunotherapy