Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells as targets for innovative immunotherapy.

Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells as targets for innovative immunotherapy. World J Gastroenterol. 2020 Apr 14;26(14):1580-1593 Authors: Chivu-Economescu M, Necula LG, Matei L, Dragu DL, Neagu AI, Alexiu I, Bleotu C, Diaconu CC Abstract The role of cancer stem cells in gastrointestinal cancer-associated death has been widely recognized. Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells (GCSCs) are considered to be responsible for tumor initiation, growth, resistance to cytotoxic therapies, recurrence and metastasis due to their unique properties. These properties make the current therapeutic trials against GCSCs ineffective. Moreover, recent studies have shown that targeting stem cell surface markers or stemness associated pathways might have an additional off-target effect on the immune system. Recent advances in oncology and precision medicine have opened alternative therapeutic strategies in the form of cancer immunotherapy. This approach differs from classical anti-cancer therapy through its mechanism of action involving the activation and use of a functional immune system against tumor cells, instead of aiming physically destruction of cancer cells through radio- or chemotherapy. New immunological approaches for GCSCs targeting involve the use of different immune cells and various immune mechanisms like targeting specific surface antigens, using innate immune cells like the natural killer and T cells, T-cell chimeric antigen receptor technolog...
Source: World Journal of Gastroenterology : WJG - Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Tags: World J Gastroenterol Source Type: research