Regulatory T cells and cancer: an undesired tolerance

Abstract

The incidence of cancer is markedly increased in organ transplant patients. A better understanding of underlying mechanisms and the identification of biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis are major challenges. Hope et al. report expansion of regulatory T cells to be associated with the presence and severity of cancer. Although relevant, these results raise several questions.

Downregulation of myeloma-induced ICOS-L and regulatory T cell generation by lenalidomide and dexamethasone therapy

“…This includes changes in the tumour microenvironment and the alteration of immune effector cell sub-populations to influence the global immune response. For example, it has been shown that the proportion of CD4 + regulatory T cells (T Reg cells) both in the peripheral blood and local tumour microenvironment are increased, which is associated with poorer outcomes [4][5][6][7]. Under normal conditions T Reg cells are essential to limit the immune response post-infection and thus prevent host tissue damage.…”