Immunotherapy for the treatment of colorectal cancer.

ABSTRACT

Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) has transformed the management of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) with mismatch-repair deficiency (dMMR) and microsatellite instability (MSI-H), though this constitutes on average less than 5% of mCRC, and ICI is ineffective in preserved MMR/microsatellite stable disease (pMMR/MSS). Here we review the efficacy of ICI in dMMR/MSI-H mCRC, poor response to ICI in pMMR/MSS mCRC, role for ICI in locally advanced disease, biomarkers of response, novel immunotherapies, and future directions in targeting resistance mechanisms.