Immunotherapy in Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: Beyond Copy/Paste

Immunotherapy has dramatically changed the cancer treatment landscape during the past decade, but very limited efficacy has been reported against pancreatic cancer. Several factors unique to pancreatic cancer may explain the resistance: the well-recognized suppressive elements in the tumor microenvironment, the functional and structural barrier imposed by the stroma components, T cell exhaustion, the choice of perhaps the wrong immune targets, and microbial factors including gut dysbiosis and the unexpected presence of tumor microbes. Furthermore, we discuss various strategies to overcome these barriers.

Automated summary

Pancreatic cancer shows limited efficacy to immunotherapy due to unique factors such as suppressive elements in the tumor microenvironment, barriers imposed by stroma components, T cell exhaustion, possibly wrong immune targets, and microbial factors. Various strategies to overcome these barriers are discussed in the article.