Reviews & Analysis

De-escalation of treatment for HER2⁺ breast cancer is a priority, given the increase in cure rates owing in part to improved HER2-targeted therapies. In this regard, the neoadjuvant approach provides the ideal platform to test less-intensive treatment regimens. Here we highlight a study that demonstrated the role of the metabolic response after dual HER2 blockade as a method of selecting patients who are most likely to benefit from chemotherapy-free neoadjuvant therapy.

The majority of patients with cancers of unknown primary have unfavourable outcomes when they receive empirical chemotherapy. The shift towards using precision medicine-based treatment strategies involves two options: tissue-agnostic or site-specific approaches. Here, we reflect on how cytology-based deep learning tools can be leveraged in these approaches.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has revolutionized the treatment of various haematological malignancies but is associated with characteristic toxicities as well as less well-defined adverse effects, many of which can be severe and potentially fatal. The increasing clinical experience with CAR T cell products has resulted in better recognition and management of these toxicities using a range of pharmacotherapies, although this is an area of continued evolution and refinement. In this Review, Brudno and Kochenderfer discuss the current understanding and clinical management of CAR T cell-associated toxicities.

Lessons from the prevention of cervical cancer, the first cancer type deemed amenable to elimination, can provide information on strategies to manage other cancers. Infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) causes virtually all cervical cancers and an important proportion of other cancer types. The authors of this Review discuss the epidemiology of HPV-associated cancers and the potential for their elimination, focusing on the cofactors that could have the greatest effect on prevention efforts and health equity.

Following their successful implementation in the COVID-19 pandemic, the technology behind mRNA vaccines is now being applied to cancer. In this Review, the authors described the several decades of development of mRNA vaccines for patients with cancer, including initial developments in this area involving cell-based vaccines as well as more recent developments with nanoparticle-encapsulated vaccines, which are beginning to show promising clinical activity.

Expansion of the utilizable spectrum of light from the visible region to the near-infrared (NIR) window has greatly facilitated the clinical application of optical technologies for cancer imaging and phototherapy. However, use of light in the first NIR region (NIR-I) has important limitations, some of which might be overcome with emerging technologies utilizing NIR-II light. In this Review, the authors describe the current clinical experience with NIR-II-based cancer imaging and phototherapy, and discuss emerging NIR-II-based approaches that might further enhance patient outcomes. They also highlight challenges that will need to be addressed to translate NIR-II-based modalities from bench to bedside.

The FDA has approved nanoliposomal irinotecan, 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin and oxaliplatin (NALIRIFOX) for patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma on the basis of results from the NAPOLI 3 trial, in which this four-drug regimen improved overall survival relative to a doublet regimen. Here we discuss how, in the context of prior results from the PRODIGE 4 trial testing 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan and oxaliplatin (modified FOLFIRINOX), NALIRIFOX does not seem to raise the bar, but rather exposes patients and health-care systems to financial toxicities.

By combining multiple MRI sequences, each providing different but complementary information about the tumour microenvironment (TME), multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) enables non-invasive assessment of the heterogeneous features of the TME components. The authors of this Review describe the role of mpMRI in the non-invasive characterization of the TME, presenting examples of its utility in cancer detection, staging and assessment of response to therapy, and considering future applications for personalized integrated diagnostics.

T cell infiltration in the tumour microenvironment (TME) is a prerequisite for sustained antitumour immune responses. However, identifying predictive biomarkers that quantify T cell infiltration and the presence of proinflammatory TMEs associated with immune-checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) response for clinical implementation has proved challenging. Here, we highlight a study that validates a T cell-to-stroma enrichment score generated from RNA sequencing data as a novel biomarker for ICI response in patients with urothelial carcinoma.

The benefit of combining antiangiogenic agents with immune-checkpoint inhibitors has been demonstrated in pivotal phase III trials across different cancer types, some with practice-changing results; however, other phase III trials have had negative results. The authors of this Perspective discuss the variable outcomes of these trials, considering factors that account for these differences and suggesting future initiatives for improving the outcomes in patients receiving these combinations.

Nucleic acid-based therapies offer an alternative to traditional cancer treatment modalities, with promising data beginning to emerge. In this Review, the authors describe the design and development of nucleic acid-based therapies administered virally and non-virally, including discussions of the advantages and disadvantage of each approach, as well as the role of patient-specific factors such as the tumour microenvironment, and consider the most promising future research directions.

Ovarian cancer, accounting for 4.7% of cancer deaths in women in 2020, remains highly prevalent globally. Nonetheless, owing to changes in environmental exposures, the approach to preventive measures and disease classification, both incidence and mortality have been declining in economically developed countries since the early 2000s. Conversely, parts of Asia and eastern Europe have seen increases in the incidence of ovarian cancer over this period of time. In this Review, the authors summarize the epidemiology of ovarian cancer, including the roles of the various risk factors and the potential for prevention.

A recent study reported the development and validation of the Liver Artificial Intelligence Diagnosis System (LiAIDS), a fully automated system that integrates deep learning for the diagnosis of liver lesions on the basis of contrast-enhanced CT scans and clinical information. This tool improved diagnostic precision, surpassed the accuracy of junior radiologists (and equalled that of senior radiologists) and streamlined patient triage. These advances underscore the potential of artificial intelligence to enhance hepatology care, although challenges to widespread clinical implementation remain.

The composition of the gut microbiota has emerged as a tumour-extrinsic factor that modulates response to immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), although the lack of consistency in microbiota signatures across studies has limited their value as reliable biomarkers. Herein, we discuss a recent study in which longitudinal microbiome profiling identified several taxa that are persistently enriched in patients with melanoma and a favourable response to ICIs.

The development and successful phase III testing of the anti-claudin 18.2 antibody zolbetuximab has provided a novel targeted therapy for the 30–40% of patients with strongly claudin 18.2-positive gastric cancers. Furthermore, the development of an effective targeted therapy for a target that does not have a driver role in cancer development provides a novel drug development paradigm. In this Review, the authors describe the development of claudin 18.2-targeted therapies, including zolbetuximab, as well as novel therapies, including chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells, antibody–drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies, all of which have the potential to expand the number of patients who can derive benefit from claudin 18.2-targeted therapies in the near future.

Copper is an essential trace element with inherent redox properties and fundamental roles in a diverse range of biological processes; therefore, maintaining copper homeostasis is crucial. In this Review, the authors discuss new insights into the mechanisms by which disrupted copper homeostasis contributes to tumour initiation and development, including the recently defined concepts of cuproplasia (copper-dependent cell growth and proliferation) and cuproptosis (a mitochondrial pathway of cell death triggered by excessive copper exposure). They also discuss potential strategies to exploit cuproplasia and cuproptosis for the treatment of cancer.

The benefits and potential harms of mammography-based screening for breast cancer are often a matter of debate. Here, I discuss the promises and limitations of a recent study that tested an artificial intelligence-based tool for the detection of breast cancer in digital mammograms in a large, prospective screening setting.

FGFR inhibitors are now approved for use in patients with advanced-stage urothelial carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma and myeloid or lymphoid neoplasms that harbour certain FGFR alterations. Nonetheless, challenges such as tolerability and acquired resistance limit the clinical potential of these agents. In this Review, the authors summarize the available clinical data on FGFR inhibitors, describe promising novel agents and highlight future research directions that might optimize the efficacy of FGFR-targeted therapies.

Patients with early stage hepatocellular carcinoma typically undergo resection, liver transplantation or local ablation; however, 30–50% will have disease recurrence at 3 years. The authors of this Review describe the tumour immune microenvironment and mechanism of action of immunotherapies, and discuss the available evidence from phase II/III trials of neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment approaches in this setting.

Increasing evidence indicates that signalling networks activated downstream of oncogenic alterations contribute fundamentally to cancer immune evasion, including by promoting the accumulation of regulatory T (T_reg) cells and other immunosuppressive cells in the tumour microenvironment (TME). Herein, the authors discuss the mechanisms via which cancers engage T_reg cells to evade antitumour immunity, as well as the characteristics of T_reg cells in the TME and their roles in resistance to immune-checkpoint inhibitors. Considering these aspects, they propose the concept of ‘immuno-genomic cancer evolution’ for tumorigenesis and the related paradigm of ‘immuno-genomic precision medicine’, postulating that the specific characteristics of cancer, especially genetic profiles that correlate with particular immunosuppressive networks in the TME, are likely to inform individualized strategies for combining molecularly targeted agents with immunotherapies.