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Current Approaches of Immune Checkpoint Therapy in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

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Opinion statement

Increasing understanding of the complex interaction between leukemic and immune cells, which is responsible for tumor progression and immune evasion, has paved the way for the development of novel immunotherapy approaches in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). One of the well-known immune escape mechanisms of tumor cells is the up-regulation of immune checkpoint molecules. In recent years, targeting immune checkpoint receptors is the most clinically effective immunotherapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. In this regard, various immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) drugs are currently been investigating for their potential effects on improving anti-tumor immune response and clinical efficacy in the hematological malignancies; however, their effectiveness in patients with CLL has shown less remarkable success, and ongoing research is focused on identifying strategies to enhance the efficacy of ICB in CLL.

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References and Recommended Reading

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  1. Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

    Saeid Taghiloo PhD & Hossein Asgarian-Omran PhD

  2. Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Center, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

    Hossein Asgarian-Omran PhD

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S.T. contributed to the study design as well as writing of the manuscript. H.AO. supervised the study and contributed to the study concept, editing, and final approval of the manuscript.

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Taghiloo, S., Asgarian-Omran, H. Current Approaches of Immune Checkpoint Therapy in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Curr. Treat. Options in Oncol. 24, 1408–1438 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11864-023-01129-5

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