Drug Design, Development and Therapy (Sep 2022)
Emerging Therapeutic Strategies of Different Immunotherapy Approaches Combined with PD-1/PD-L1 Blockade in Cervical Cancer
Abstract
Yanjun Ge,1,* Yuchen Zhang,1,* Kong-Nan Zhao,2,3 Haiyan Zhu1,2 1Department of Gynecology, Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Basic Medical Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Haiyan Zhu, Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital, No. 2699 Gaokexi Road, Shanghai, 200092, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13758465255, Email [email protected]: Currently, therapeutic methods for advanced and recurrent cervical cancer patients are limited and unsatisfactory. Immunotherapy is a promising approach for cancer treatment. However, its investigation and application in cervical cancer remain slow. Although pembrolizumab is a remarkable milestone as the first anti-PD-1 mAb approved by the FDA for treating cervical cancer, it shows relatively low response rate. It is noticed that multiple novel immune checkpoints have emerged in recent years, such as CTLA-4, TIGIT, LAG-3, TIM-3, and A2AR. Accumulated studies have suggested that strategies combining the PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors and different immunotherapies or biotherapies could enhance the antitumor efficacy in human cancers. In this review article, we provide an overview of anti-PD-1/PD-L1-based immunotherapy in cervical cancer treatment. We further summarize the developmental strategies of different immunotherapies or biotherapies combined with PD-1/PD-L1 blockade for treating cervical cancer. We also discuss how these new combined therapies increase the therapeutic benefit gained from experimental evidence in cervical cancer.Keywords: cervical cancer, immunotherapy, PD-1/PD-L1, combinatorial strategy, mechanism, clinical practice
