Chemoimmunotherapy: an emerging strategy for the treatment of malignant mesothelioma.
Tissue Antigens
; 74(1): 1-10, 2009 Jul.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-19422663
ABSTRACT
Whether the immune system can recognize malignant and premalignant cells and eliminate them to prevent the development of cancer is still a matter of open debate, but in our view, the balance of evidence favours this concept. Nonetheless, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has now predicted that cancer will overtake heart disease as the leading cause of death worldwide by 2010, showing that this protective mechanism often fails. Malignant mesothelioma has traditionally been considered a relatively non-immunogenic cancer. However, mesothelioma cells do express a set of well-defined tumour antigens that have been shown to engage with the host immune system. Mesothelioma should therefore be considered a target for immunotherapy. A variety of anticancer immunotherapies have been investigated in mesothelioma and in other malignancies, although these have been largely ineffective when used in isolation. Over recent years, there has been increasing interest in the possibility of combining immunotherapy with chemotherapy in the fight against cancer. Here, we discuss the rationale behind combining these two, long considered antagonistic, treatment options in the context of malignant mesothelioma.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Terapia de Inmunosupresión
/
Neoplasias Mesoteliales
/
Mesotelioma
/
Antígenos de Neoplasias
/
Antineoplásicos
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Tissue Antigens
Año:
2009
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Australia