The immune infiltrate in prostate, bladder and testicular tumors: an old friend for new challenges

Publication date: Available online 30 December 2016
Source:Cancer Treatment Reviews
Author(s): Cinzia Solinas, Nieves Martinez Chanzá, Ahmad Awada, Mario Scartozzi
In genito-urinary tumors immunotherapy has been administered for a long time: Calmette-Guèrin Bacillus as adjuvant treatment in high risk patients with non-muscle invasive urothelial bladder cancer and interleukin-2 and interferon-α in metastatic kidney cancer. The vaccine Sipuleucel-T has been recently approved by United States Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of castration resistant prostate cancer patients with asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic disease, given the 22% reduction of mortality risk in this group. Recently immunotherapeutic agents targeting inhibitory immune checkpoint molecules lead to improved outcomes and lasting anti-tumor effects in a variety of hematological and solid malignancies, including urogenital tumors. The benefit from these treatments has been observed in a proportion of subjects, raising a need in optimizing patients' selection. The composition and activity of a pre-existing immune infiltrate may aid in identifying ideal candidates to immunotherapy, with possible implications for the clinical management of neoplastic diseases from earlier to later stages.



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