Open AccessReflections on the Histopathology of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes in Melanoma and the Host Immune Response
Author(s) -
Martín C. Mihm,
James J. Mulé
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
cancer immunology research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.976
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 2326-6074
pISSN - 2326-6066
DOI - 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-15-0143
Subject(s) - immune system , immunology , melanoma , immunotherapy , immunity , biology , host response , tumor infiltrating lymphocytes , lymphocyte , cancer research
In the past five decades, the role for lymphocytes in host immune response to tumors has been shown, at least in some patients, to be a critical component in disease prognosis. Also, the heterogeneity of lymphocytes has been documented, including the existence of regulatory T cells that suppress the immune response. As the functions of lymphocytes have become better defined in terms of antitumor immunity, specific targets on lymphocytes have been uncovered. The appreciation of the role of immune checkpoints has also led to therapeutic approaches that illustrate the effectiveness of blocking negative regulators of the antitumor immune response. In this Masters of Immunology article, we trace the evolution of our understanding of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and discuss their role in melanoma prognosis from the very basic observation of their existence to the latest manipulation of their functions with the result of improvement of the host response against the tumor.