The Roles of the Virome in Cancer

Viral infections as well as changes in the composition of the intestinal microbiota and virome have been linked to cancer. Moreover, the success of cancer immunotherapy with checkpoint inhibitors has been correlated with the intestinal microbial composition of patients. The transfer of feces-which contain mainly bacteria and their viruses (phages)-from immunotherapy responders to non-responders, known as fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), has been shown to be able to convert some non-responders to responders. Since phages may also increase the response to immunotherapy, for example by inducing T cells cross-reacting with cancer antigens, modulating phage populations may provide a new avenue to improve immunotherapy responsiveness. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the human virome and its links to cancer, and discuss the potential utility of bacteriophages in increasing the responder rate for cancer immunotherapy.

Automated summary

Viral infections and changes in intestinal microbiota composition have been linked to cancer, with the success of cancer immunotherapy being correlated with patients' gut microbial composition. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) can convert some non-responders to responders, and phages may increase immunotherapy response by inducing T cells cross-reacting with cancer antigens. Modulating phage populations might offer a new approach to enhance immunotherapy responsiveness.