Tumor microenvironment of human breast cancer, and feline mammary carcinoma as a potential study model

Abstract

In recent years, the tumor microenvironment (TME) has been a research hotspot, as it is composed of distinct cellular and non-cellular elements that may influence the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of breast cancer patients. Cancer cells are able to escape immune control through an immunoediting process which depends on complex communication networks between immune and cancer cells. Thus, a better understanding of the immune cell infiltrate in the breast cancer microenvironment is crucial for the development of more effective therapeutic approaches. In this review article, we overview the different actors that orchestrate the complexity of the TME, including tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), natural killer cells, tumor infiltrating dendritic cells (TIDCs), tumor associated macrophages (TAMs), tumor associated neutrophils (TANs), cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), distinct pro-angiogenic factors and immune checkpoint biomarkers. Additionally, we summarize the recent advances in the TME of feline mammary carcinoma (FMC). FMC has been proposed as a reliable cancer model for the study of human breast cancer, as they share clinicopathological, histopathological and epidemiological features, as well as the pathways involved in cancer initiation and progression.

Keywords: Breast cancer; Cancer model; Feline mammary carcinoma; Immune cells; Immune checkpoints; Tumor microenvironment.