Immunomodulatory
therapeutics, which is conducive to overcoming
tumor tolerance and restoring normal immune responses, has been proposed
as a promising approach for enhanced cancer therapy and clinical advancement.
However, issues including cytokine syndrome, inefficient delivery,
hepatic dysfunction, and severe adverse reactions remain to be resolved.
It is particularly critical to develop delivery technologies to overcome
these limitations and further improve antitumor efficacy. With the
continuous development of materials science, biomaterials have been
widely used in the field of cancer treatment and have also provided
exciting solutions to overcome the bottleneck of immunomodulatory
therapeutics. A range of biomaterials, especially nanomaterials, has
been developed as a local immunomodulatory platform to enhance targeted
delivery, maintain drug stability, and reduce toxicity and side effects.
In addition to single immunomodulatory therapeutics, nanomaterials
have been demonstrated to possess significant potential in immunomodulatory
therapeutics-based synergistic therapies, especially in combination
with phototherapy, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and immune checkpoint
blockade. In this review, as background to the discussion of immunomodulatory
therapeutics, we first described the mechanisms of action of multiple
immunomodulators and discussed their current targeting agents. On
this basis, we highlighted the latest advances in the use of nanomaterials-assisted
immunomodulatory therapeutics and combination therapy to enhance anticancer
immunity. In addition, current challenges and further promises for
immunomodulatory therapeutics were also presented.