Advanced strategies in improving the immunotherapeutic effect of CAR‐T cell therapy

Abstract

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR‐T) cell therapy is a newly developed immunotherapy strategy and has achieved satisfactory outcomes in the treatment of hematological malignancies. However, some adverse effects related to CAR‐T cell therapy have to be resolved before it is widely used in clinics as a cancer treatment. Furthermore, the application of CAR‐T cell therapy in the treatment of solid tumors has been hampered by numerous limitations. Therefore, it is essential to explore novel strategies to improve the therapeutic effect of CAR‐T cell therapy. In this review, we summarized the recently developed strategies aimed at optimizing the generation of CAR‐T cells and improving the anti‐tumor efficiency of CAR‐T cell therapy. Furthermore, the discovery of new targets for CAR‐T cell therapy and the combined treatment strategies of CAR‐T cell therapy with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, cancer vaccines and nanomaterials are highlighted.

Keywords

• cancer vaccine
• CAR‐T cell
• combined therapy
• CRISPR/Cas9
• immunotherapy
• tumor microenvironment