The role of dendritic cells in cancer and anti-tumor immunity

Dendritic cells (DC) are key sentinels of the host immune response with an important role in linking innate and adaptive immunity and maintaining tolerance. There is increasing recognition that DC are critical determinants of initiating and sustaining effective T-cell-mediated anti-tumor immune responses. Recent progress in immunooncology has led to the evolving insight that the presence and function of DC within the tumor microenvimnment (TME) may dictate efficacy of cancer immunotherapies as well as conventional cancer therapies, including immune checkpoint blockade, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. As such, improved understanding of dendritic cell immunobiology specifically focusing on their role in T-cell priming, migration into tissues and TME, and the coordinated in vivo responses of functionally specialized DC subsets will facilitate a better mechanistic understanding of how tumor-immune surveillance can be leveraged to improve patient outcomes and to develop novel DC-targeted therapeutic approaches.

Automated summary

Dendritic cells play a crucial role in the immune response, particularly in anti-tumor immune responses. Understanding the migration of dendritic cells into tissues and their function in the tumor microenvironment can help improve patient outcomes and develop novel treatments targeting dendritic cells.