Abstract

Macrophages are critical mediators of tissue homeostasis, with tumours distorting this proclivity to stimulate proliferation, angiogenesis and metastasis. This had led to an interest in targeting macrophages in cancer, and preclinical studies have demonstrated efficacy across therapeutic modalities and tumour types. Much of the observed efficacy can be traced to the suppressive capacity of macrophages, driven by microenvironmental cues such as hypoxia and fibrosis. As a result, tumour macrophages display an ability to suppress T cell recruitment and function as well as to regulate other aspects of tumour immunity. With the increasing impact of cancer immunotherapy, macrophage targeting is now being evaluated in this context. Here, we discuss the results of clinical trials and the future of combinatorial immunotherapy.

Keywords

ImmunotherapyImmune systemCancer immunotherapyMacrophageImmunityTumor microenvironmentAngiogenesisImmunologyCancer researchContext (archaeology)BiologyMetastasisCancerMedicineIn vitro

MeSH Terms

AnimalsAntigen PresentationHumansImmunotherapyLymphocytesMacrophagesNeoplasmsPhagocytosis

Affiliated Institutions

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Publication Info

Year
2019
Type
review
Volume
19
Issue
6
Pages
369-382
Citations
2304
Access
Closed

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Cite This

David G. DeNardo, Brian Ruffell (2019). Macrophages as regulators of tumour immunity and immunotherapy. Nature reviews. Immunology , 19 (6) , 369-382. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41577-019-0127-6

Identifiers

DOI
10.1038/s41577-019-0127-6
PMID
30718830
PMCID
PMC7339861

Data Quality

Data completeness: 86%