Unlocking T-cell plasticity in the tumor microenvironment: Insights into cancer immunotherapy and therapeutic innovations
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 27-Jul-2025 21:11 ET (28-Jul-2025 01:11 GMT/UTC)
T cells exhibit remarkable plasticity in the tumor microenvironment (TME), dynamically adapting their phenotypes and functions to influence cancer progression and treatment responses. A new review published in MedComm-Oncology systematically dissects the mechanisms underlying T-cell plasticity, including spatial distribution, metabolic reprogramming, and interactions with TME components. The study highlights how targeting T-cell plasticity could revolutionize cancer therapy by enhancing immunotherapy efficacy and overcoming treatment resistance.
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers are leading four studies with compelling and potentially practice changing results in colorectal cancer and breast cancer.
Investigators will also present clinical trial results that support future research into new strategies for the treatment of rare and aggressive forms of cancer and new approaches to de-escalate treatment and improve quality of life.
A groundbreaking study led by researchers at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard has uncovered critical insights into the biology of embryonal tumor with multilayered rosettes (ETMR), a rare and aggressive brain tumor affecting young children.
A team of three Japanese researchers has conducted a survey of stakeholders to examine how patient voices impact decisions related to genetic testing for hereditary cancers. These stakeholders included patients, healthcare professionals, and ethicists attending a workshop in Hiroshima in early 2025.
A case in which a sperm donor was later found to be carrying a cancer-causing pathogenic variant in his gametes has highlighted the lack of cross-border regulation in Europe, which can result in the multiple use of gametes in families and risks inbreeding and the abnormal dissemination of inherited diseases.
Lead author Camilo Faust Akl and senior author Francisco Quintana, PhD, both of the Ann Romney Center of Neurologic Diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, published a paper in Nature, “Glioblastoma-instructed astrocytes suppress tumor-1 specific T-cell immunity