Advances in targeted therapy and immunotherapy for esophageal cancer

Abstract

Esophageal cancer (EC) is one of the most common aggressive malignant tumors in the digestive system with a severe epidemiological situation and poor prognosis. The early diagnostic rate of EC is low, and most EC patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Multiple multimodality treatments have gradually evolved into the main treatment for advanced EC, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy. And the emergence of targeted therapy and immunotherapy has greatly improved the survival of EC patients. This review highlights the latest advances in targeted therapy and immunotherapy for EC, discusses the efficacy and safety of relevant drugs, summarizes related important clinical trials, and tries to provide references for therapeutic strategy of EC.

Immune cell related signature predicts prognosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma based on single-cell and bulk-RNA sequencing

“…Immune checkpoint molecules in cancer cells are associated with immune evasion, and targeting these molecules can prevent cancer cells from escaping the immune system, thus enhancing immune recognition. In patients with ESCC, immunotherapy targeting PD-1/PD-L1 immune checkpoint molecules has revealed promising clinical efficacy ( 46 ). Our study indicates that based on the risk scoring model, high-risk patients have significantly lower exclusion scores and TIDE scores compared with other patients.…”

Journey Through Words: Exploring Esophageal Cancer in Literature

“…Immunotherapies and targeted therapies, such as trastuzumab, are revolutionizing treatment paradigms, displaying promise in both neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings. The 'watch and wait' approach post neoadjuvant therapy is emerging, potentially avoiding immediate surgery and allowing a more tailored approach [25][26][27][28].…”

“…The HER2 pathway represents another pivotal target, with drugs like trastuzumab and lapatinib exhibiting efficacy in treating esophageal cancer. The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway, central to angiogenesis, is also a prime target, with drugs like bevacizumab and ramucirumab demonstrating potential [25][26][27][28][29].…”

“…Drugs targeting HER2 and VEGF, such as trastuzumab and bevacizumab, respectively, are standard treatments for advanced esophageal cancer. Immunotherapies, particularly immune checkpoint inhibitors like PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors and CTLA-4 inhibitors, show significant potential in treating esophageal cancer by enhancing immune responses [25][26][27][28][29].…”

The effect of immune cell traits on efficacy and adverse drug reactions of platinum drugs： A Mendelian randomization analysis

“…Because of environmental factors, diet factors and stress factors, the incidence of cancer has been rising year after year, and it is all in the late stage when it is discovered (Siegel et al 2023). Nowadays, the course of cancer treatment from radiotherapy and chemotherapy, surgery to immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and then to cell therapy has greatly improved the treatment and prognosis of cancer (Yang et al 2023). However, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are still the basic scheme of tumor treatment, among which platinum drugs have been used in tumor treatment since the 1970s and are still widely used in various tumors (Farina et al 2017).…”