Immunotherapy Combinations with Chemotherapy in Oncology
Summary
Immunotherapy combinations with chemotherapy represent a paradigm shift in oncology, embedding conventional cytotoxic agents within immunomodulatory frameworks to enhance anti-tumour efficacy. Traditional chemotherapy has long been prescribed for its direct cytocidal effects on rapidly dividing cells, yet its potential to interact with and shape the immune response has only recently been elucidated. By selecting chemotherapeutic agents that trigger immunogenic cell death or modulate key elements of the tumour microenvironment, clinicians can prime patients for subsequent or concurrent treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors, adoptive T-cell therapies or tumour vaccines. This integrated approach can increase tumour antigen presentation, facilitate T-cell infiltration and reduce immunosuppressive populations such as regulatory T-cells and myeloid-derived suppressor cells, thereby overcoming inherent or acquired resistance to monotherapies.
From a global perspective, combination regimens may translate to improved response rates across a broad spectrum of malignancies, including lung, breast and colorectal cancers, while offering a route to durable remissions. Practical applications are already emerging in the clinic: low-dose metronomic chemotherapy schedules are being refined to minimise myelosuppression while maximising immunogenic potential, and the sequencing of cytotoxic and immunotherapeutic agents is under investigation to optimise synergistic windows. Ongoing trials aim to define biomarkers that predict which patients will benefit most, thereby advancing precision oncology in an era when treatment choice must balance efficacy, toxicity and cost.
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Immunotherapy Combinations with Chemotherapy in Oncology publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in immunotherapy combinations with chemotherapy in oncology across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Immunogenic cell death: A form of tumour cell apoptosis that releases danger signals and neoantigens, enhancing immune recognition.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors: Monoclonal antibodies targeting regulators such as PD-1, PD-L1 or CTLA-4 to restore T-cell activity.
Tumour microenvironment: The complex milieu of stromal, immune and extracellular components surrounding a tumour.
Neoantigen: A novel peptide derived from tumour-specific mutations, recognised by T cells as non-self.
Immunoadjuvant: A substance that augments antigen-specific immune responses when co-administered with an antigen.
References
- Taxanes trigger cancer cell killing in vivo by inducing non-canonical T cell cytotoxicity. Cancer Cell (2023).
- Enhancing immune responses of ESC-based TAA cancer vaccines with a novel OMV delivery system. Journal of Nanobiotechnology (2024).
- Immunogenic Chemotherapy Sensitizes Tumors to Checkpoint Blockade Therapy. Immunity (2016).
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