Cancer researchers shape new strategies for immunotherapy

Scientists at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and their collaborators are exploring emerging trends in cancer immunotherapy, with back-to-back review articles published in Nature Cancer and Trends in Cancer that look at how nanotechnology could reprogram the immune system and help overcome tumors’ defenses.

Both papers highlight how nanoengineering strategies are emerging as powerful tools to address limitations of current immunotherapies, particularly in treating solid tumors.

“Our immune system has remarkable potential to fight cancer, but tumors develop ways to suppress or evade these defenses,” said DaeYong Lee, assistant professor with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. “By integrating nanotechnology with immunology, we are exploring new possibilities for designing therapies that are more precise and effective.”

The review articles synthesize emerging insights from across the field. Lee and his colleagues integrate research from multiple laboratories and approaches to define where nanomedicine and immunotherapy intersect today, setting the stage for innovation and potential breakthroughs. 

The Nature Cancer review article, first author Lee, in partnership with corresponding authors Wen Jiang and Betty Y.S. Kim of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, outlines how nanotechnology can:

Enhance drug delivery, ensuring therapies reach tumor sites. Reprogram the tumor microenvironment, making cancers more responsive to treatment. Work with emerging approaches such as mRNA vaccines and engineered immune cells to expand their reach.

The Trends in Cancer article, co-authored by corresponding researcher Lee and colleagues with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, focuses on phagocytosis — the process by which immune cells engulf and eliminate tumor cells. The review outlines strategies by which nanomedicines may help restore this natural defense, including efforts to:

Block signals displayed on the surface of cancer cells that allow them to evade destruction by the immune system. Engineer macrophages with chimeric antigen receptors (CARMs) to better identify and destroy solid tumors. Strengthen recognition signals on tumor cells — molecular cues that mark them for attack by immune cells.

By integrating key advances from multiple laboratories and disciplines, Lee and his collaborators provide a framework for understanding how nanomedicine can transform cancer immunotherapy, a step toward next-generation patient treatments. 

“The challenge now is translating these discoveries into therapies that are safe, effective, and accessible for patients,” said Lee, who is also a faculty member in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics at Virginia Tech. “That’s the goal we’re working towards.”

These works were supported by the National Institutes of Health, the American Cancer Society, the American Brain Tumor Association, the Radiological Society of North America, the Red Gates Foundation, the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, Virginia Tech’s Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS), the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, and Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC.

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