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The Future of Cancer Immunotherapy: Biomarkers, Tumor Microenvironment, and Precision Medicine

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 3266

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Immunology, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Elm & Carlton Sts. CGP/BLSC-L5307, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA
Interests: cancer research; immunity; microbiome; immunology; chromatin biology
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cancer is a complex and diverse disease influenced by genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. Despite significant progress in medical science, it remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide, affecting millions of people every year. Standard treatments for various cancer types, which include surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, have shown limited success. This highlights the urgent need for the development of new therapies. Recently, there has been a growing emphasis on immunotherapy and personalized medicine as promising strategies for more effectively combating cancer. Current immune checkpoint inhibitors and CAR T-cell therapies face challenges, especially in the treatment of solid tumors. This underscores the necessity for additional clinical biomarkers to identify new therapeutic targets within the realm of personalized medicine. With the advent of high-throughput techniques, both genomics and proteomics have become crucial for identifying mutations that drive tumor initiation and progression, as well as for discovering relevant biomarkers for chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Additionally, proteomic profiling of hematological malignancies and solid tumors will provide deeper insights into the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that shape the tumor microenvironment. This knowledge will facilitate the customization of personalized medicine for various cancer types. By leveraging our current understanding of immunotherapy and conducting genomic and proteomic analyses of cancer patient samples, we can uncover new targets that can aid in the development of novel therapies. Ultimately, this approach aims to enhance life expectancy for cancer patients.

Dr. Aftab Alam
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • immunotherapy
  • genomics
  • proteomics checkpoint
  • CAR T cells
  • predictive biomarkers
  • resistance mechanisms
  • combination approaches
  • tumor microenvironment

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Review

42 pages, 2328 KB  
Review
Extracellular Vesicles in Cancer: Mechanistic Insights and Clinical Applications
by Fahad A. Alhumaydhi and Shehwaz Anwar
Cancers 2026, 18(3), 537; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18030537 - 6 Feb 2026
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1336
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as important messengers in cell-to-cell communication, carrying biologically active molecules such as lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins that influence both normal physiology and disease. In cancer, EVs play complex and context-dependent roles, contributing to tumor growth, angiogenesis, immune [...] Read more.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as important messengers in cell-to-cell communication, carrying biologically active molecules such as lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins that influence both normal physiology and disease. In cancer, EVs play complex and context-dependent roles, contributing to tumor growth, angiogenesis, immune evasion, metastasis, and resistance to therapy, while in certain settings, they may also support antitumor immune responses. Increasing evidence shows that EVs released from tumor and stromal cells actively reshape the tumor microenvironment (TME) and participate in the formation of pre-metastatic niches, thereby facilitating cancer dissemination. Because EVs are stable, readily detectable in body fluids, and reflect the molecular characteristics of their cells of origin, they have attracted considerable interest as minimally invasive biomarkers for cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment monitoring. In addition, their natural biocompatibility makes them attractive candidates for targeted drug delivery. This review summarizes current knowledge on EV biogenesis, cargo composition, and functional roles in cancer progression, with a particular focus on recent advances in their clinical applications. Key challenges related to EV isolation, characterization, and clinical translations are also discussed, highlighting future opportunities for integrating EV-based strategies into precision oncology. Full article
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30 pages, 778 KB  
Review
Immunotherapeutic Strategies for Prostate Cancer: A Comprehensive Review
by Ana K. Flores-Islas, Cecilia Rico-Fuentes, Erick Sierra-Díaz, Mariel García-Chagollán, Ana Laura Pereira-Suárez, José Sergio Zepeda-Nuño, José M. Moreno-Ortiz and Adrián Ramírez-de-Arellano
Cancers 2026, 18(2), 255; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18020255 - 14 Jan 2026
Viewed by 1432
Abstract
Prostate cancer (PCa) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and the second most common cancer among men. Treatment options depend on factors like age, androgen sensitivity, PSA levels, Gleason score, TNM stage, and recurrence risk. Available treatments include hormonal therapy, radiation, [...] Read more.
Prostate cancer (PCa) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and the second most common cancer among men. Treatment options depend on factors like age, androgen sensitivity, PSA levels, Gleason score, TNM stage, and recurrence risk. Available treatments include hormonal therapy, radiation, surgery, and chemotherapy. Early immunological treatments were limited by poor lymphocyte infiltration and an immunosuppressive environment. Today, strategies such as dendritic cell vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), and adoptive cell therapy (ACT) are used. ACT, especially CAR T-cell strategies, aims to overcome traditional treatment limitations, particularly in advanced and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), though it remains in early development. Personalized medicine uses molecular insights from the diseased tissue to tailor treatments. Variability in patient response, due to tumor heterogeneity and prior treatments, highlights the importance of personalized and combination therapies as future strategies for effective immunotherapy. This review explores the current landscape of PCa. We analyze treatment guidelines established by NCCN and EANM-ESTRO-ESUR-ISUP-SIOG. We comprehensively examine immunotherapeutic strategies currently available or under investigation for prostate cancer, with particular emphasis on ICIs, ACT with a focus on CAR T-cell therapy, combination approaches and therapeutic synergies, and predictive biomarkers of immunotherapy response. Additionally, we discuss the challenges and future directions in the implementation of immunotherapy for the management of prostate cancer. Full article
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