Antibody-Based Immunotherapy: Alternative Approaches for the Treatment of Metastatic Melanoma
Fleury Augustin Nsole Biteghe,
Nyangone Ekome Toung Chalomie,
Neelakshi Mungra,
Guillaume Vignaux,
Nan Gao,
Aurelia Vergeade,
Ambrose Okem,
Krupa Naran,
Jean De La Croix Ndong,
Stefan Barth
Affiliations
Fleury Augustin Nsole Biteghe
Department of Radiation Oncology and Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical, 8700 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
Nyangone Ekome Toung Chalomie
Zhongshan Medical School, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
Neelakshi Mungra
Medical Biotechnology & Immunotherapy Research Unit, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Guillaume Vignaux
Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC) Federal, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
Nan Gao
School of Arts and Science, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
Aurelia Vergeade
Department of Clinics and Pharmacology, Vanderbilt Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
Ambrose Okem
Department of Anaesthesia, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa
Krupa Naran
Medical Biotechnology & Immunotherapy Research Unit, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Jean De La Croix Ndong
School of Arts and Science, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
Stefan Barth
Medical Biotechnology & Immunotherapy Research Unit, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Melanoma is the least common form of skin cancer and is associated with the highest mortality. Where melanoma is mostly unresponsive to conventional therapies (e.g., chemotherapy), BRAF inhibitor treatment has shown improved therapeutic outcomes. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) relies on a light-activated compound to produce death-inducing amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Their capacity to selectively accumulate in tumor cells has been confirmed in melanoma treatment with some encouraging results. However, this treatment approach has not reached clinical fruition for melanoma due to major limitations associated with the development of resistance and subsequent side effects. These adverse effects might be bypassed by immunotherapy in the form of antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) relying on the ability of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to target specific tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) and to be used as carriers to specifically deliver cytotoxic warheads into corresponding tumor cells. Of late, the continued refinement of ADC therapeutic efficacy has given rise to photoimmunotherapy (PIT) (a light-sensitive compound conjugated to mAbs), which by virtue of requiring light activation only exerts its toxic effect on light-irradiated cells. As such, this review aims to highlight the potential clinical benefits of various armed antibody-based immunotherapies, including PDT, as alternative approaches for the treatment of metastatic melanoma.
