title: Disentangling the relationship between tumor genetic programs and immune responsiveness.
abstract: Correlative studies in humans have demonstrated that an active immune microenvironment characterized by the presence of a T-helper 1 immune response typifies a tumor phenotype associated with better outcome and increased responsiveness to immune manipulation. This phenotype also signifies the counter activation of immune-regulatory mechanisms. Variables modulating the development of an effective anti-tumor immune response are increasingly scrutinized as potential therapeutic targets. Genetic alterations of cancer cells that functionally influence intratumoral immune response include mutational load, specific mutations of genes involved in oncogenic pathways and copy number aberrations involving chemokine and cytokine genes. Inhibiting oncogenic pathways that prevent the development of the immune-favorable cancer phenotype may complement modern immunotherapeutic approaches.
authors.affiliation: Tumor Biology, Immunology and Therapy Section, Division of Translational Medicine, Research Branch, Sidra Medical and Research Center, Doha, Qatar. Electronic address: dbedognetti@sidra.org.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bedognetti
authors.affiliation: Tumor Biology, Immunology and Therapy Section, Division of Translational Medicine, Research Branch, Sidra Medical and Research Center, Doha, Qatar.
authors.forename: Wouter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hendrickx
authors.affiliation: Qatar Computing Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar.
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ceccarelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Biology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Lance D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Immunology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Seliger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment / Q000276:immunology*