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Review
. 2021 Apr;11(4):933-959.
doi: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-20-1808.

Therapeutic Targeting of the Tumor Microenvironment

Leire Bejarano #  1 , Marta J C Jordāo #  1 , Johanna A Joyce  2   3
Affiliations
Review

Therapeutic Targeting of the Tumor Microenvironment

Leire Bejarano et al. Cancer Discov. 2021 Apr.

Abstract

Strategies to therapeutically target the tumor microenvironment (TME) have emerged as a promising approach for cancer treatment in recent years due to the critical roles of the TME in regulating tumor progression and modulating response to standard-of-care therapies. Here, we summarize the current knowledge regarding the most advanced TME-directed therapies, which have either been clinically approved or are currently being evaluated in trials, including immunotherapies, antiangiogenic drugs, and treatments directed against cancer-associated fibroblasts and the extracellular matrix. We also discuss some of the challenges associated with TME therapies, and future perspectives in this evolving field. SIGNIFICANCE: This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the current therapies targeting the TME, combining a discussion of the underlying basic biology with clinical evaluation of different therapeutic approaches, and highlighting the challenges and future perspectives.

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References

    1. Junttila MR, de Sauvage FJ. Influence of tumour micro-environment heterogeneity on therapeutic response. Nature. 2013;501:346–54.
    1. Quail DF, Joyce JA. Microenvironmental regulation of tumor progression and metastasis. Nat Med. 2013;19:1423–37.
    1. Joyce JA. Therapeutic targeting of the tumor microenvironment. Cancer Cell. 2005;7:513–20.
    1. Salmon H, Remark R, Gnjatic S, Merad M. Host tissue determinants of tumour immunity. Nat Rev Cancer. 2019;19:215–27.
    1. Klemm F, Joyce JA. Microenvironmental regulation of therapeutic response in cancer. Trends Cell Biol. 2015;25:198–213.

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