Fighting Fire With Fire: Oncolytic Virotherapy for Thoracic Malignancies

Abstract

Thoracic malignancies are associated with high mortality rates. Conventional therapy for many of the patients with thoracic malignancies is obviated by a high incidence of locoregional recurrence and distant metastasis. Fortunately, developments in immunotherapy provide effective strategies for both local and systemic treatments that have rapidly advanced during the last decade. One promising approach to cancer immunotherapy is to use oncolytic viruses, which have the advantages of relatively high tumor specificity, selective replication-mediated oncolysis, enhanced antigen presentation, and potential for delivery of immunogenic payloads such as cytokines, with subsequent elicitation of effective antitumor immunity. Several oncolytic viruses including adenovirus, coxsackievirus B3, herpes virus, measles virus, reovirus, and vaccinia virus have been developed and applied to thoracic cancers in preclinical murine studies and clinical trials. This review discusses the current state of oncolytic virotherapy in lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and metastatic malignant pleural effusions and considers its potential as an emergent therapeutic for these patients.

Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus Expressing White-Spotted Charr Lectin Regulates Antiviral Response in Tumor Cells and Inhibits Tumor Growth In Vitro and In Vivo

“…Vaccinia viruses can be used as replicating vectors harboring therapeutic genes to directly lyse tumor cells, or as cancer vaccines to stimulate antitumor immunity [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. JX-594, the most famous oncolytic vaccinia virus carrying a human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) gene with the thymidine kinase (TK) gene deletion, has been advanced to clinical phase III for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and clinical phase II trial for renal cell carcinoma [ 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus Harboring Aphrocallistes vastus Lectin Inhibits the Growth of Cervical Cancer Cells Hela S3

“…It has been widely used in the eradication of smallpox [1]. Oncolytic vaccinia virus harboring therapeutic genes has been applied to lyse tumor cells directly [2][3][4]. To date, several oncolytic vaccinia viruses derived from Wyeth, Western Reserve, and Lister vaccinia strains are being used clinically [5][6][7].…”

New Strategies and Combinations to Improve Outcomes in Immunotherapy in Metastatic Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer

“…Oncolytic virus (OV) therapy is another strategy aimed at promoting immune activation via targeted immunogenic cell death [ 63 ]. Oncolytic viruses are modified to preferentially infect tumor cells and their introduction into the TIME causes tumor cell lysis, release of DAMPs and PAMPs, activating innate immune sensors and recruitment of immune cells to drive an anti-tumor immune response [ 64 , 65 ].…”