Cellular Immunotherapy in Cancer: Current Trends and Future Directions
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Immunology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Cellular immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment by harnessing and engineering immune cells to achieve durable antitumor responses. Rapid progress in molecular immunology and oncology, genetic engineering, therapeutic biotechnology and synthetic biology has enabled the development of advanced cellular therapies and immune cell-based treatment, promising platforms for malignant tumors including chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells, CAR-NK cells, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), CAR-macrophages, and TCR-engineered lymphocytes. Understanding the molecular mechanisms governing immune cell activation, persistence, exhaustion, metabolic fitness, trafficking and resistance within the tumor microenvironment is critical for improving therapeutic efficacy and safety.
I am pleased to invite you to contribute to the forthcoming Special Issue “Cellular Immunotherapy in Cancer: Current Trends and Future Directions” of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences. This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive molecular perspective on current trends and emerging directions in cellular immunotherapy approaches in cancer, with a strong emphasis on translational immuno-oncology.
In this Special Issue, original research articles and comprehensive reviews are welcome. Research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Molecular mechanisms of CAR-T, CAR-NK, and CAR-macrophage therapies;
- Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs): signaling, persistence, and exhaustion;
- TCR-engineered immune cells and antigen recognition biology;
- Immune checkpoint signaling and resistance mechanisms;
- Tumor microenvironment and immune cell interactions;
- Immunometabolism and cellular fitness;
- CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing in immune cells;
- Epigenetic regulation of immune cell function;
- Single-cell and multi-omics approaches in immunotherapy;
- Translational immuno-oncology and biomarker discovery.
Dr. Vahid Vahedian
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- cellular immunotherapy
- CAR-T cells
- CAR-NK cells
- CAR-macrophages
- tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs)
- immune receptor signaling
- tumor microenvironment
- CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing
- precision cancer immunotherapy
- translational immuno-oncology
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