PD-L1 (B7-H1) and PD-1 pathway blockade for cancer therapy: Mechanisms, response biomarkers, and combinations

PD-L1 and PD-1 (PD) pathway blockade is a highly promising therapy and has elicited durable antitumor responses and long-term remissions in a subset of patients with a broad spectrum of cancers. How to improve, widen, and predict the clinical response to anti-PD therapy is a central theme in the field of cancer immunology and immunotherapy. Oncologic, immunologic, genetic, and biological studies focused on the human cancer microenvironment have yielded substantial insight into this issue. Here, we focus on tumor microenvironment and evaluate several potential therapeutic response markers including the PD-L1 and PD-1 expression pattern, genetic mutations within cancer cells and neoantigens, cancer epigenetics…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Defense
• OC
  Ovarian Cancer Research Fund

  Awards: CA121974, CA016359, CA177444
• HJ
  Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust
• NI
  National Institutes of Health

  Awards: CA100227, CA190176, CA133620, CA152470, CA193136, CA156685, CA099985, CA092562, CA123088, CA171306
• SU
  Stand Up To Cancer