Infectious Complications of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors.

ABSTRACT

The clearance of both tumors and microbes depends on highly coordinated immune responses that are sufficiently potent to kill malignant or microbial cells while avoiding immunopathology from an overly exuberant inflammatory response. A molecular understanding of the immune pathways that regulate these responses paved the way for the development of checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) as a therapeutic strategy to boost endogenous antitumor immunity. CPIs have demonstrated survival benefits across a wide spectrum of cancers. While infectious complications of CPIs are uncommon, immune-related adverse events occur frequently and often require immunosuppressive therapies that increase the risk of infection.