Predictive biomarkers for immunotherapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma: from tumor microenvironment to macroenvironment.
10.1007/s11684-025-1151-5
- Author:
Saiwei HUANG
1
;
Yelin LIANG
1
;
Na LIU
2
;
Jun MA
3
Author Information
1. Department of Radiation Oncology, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, China.
2. Department of Experimental Research, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, China.
3. Department of Radiation Oncology, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, China. majun2@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
- Publication Type:Review
- Keywords:
immunotherapy;
nasopharyngeal carcinoma;
predictive biomarker
- MeSH:
Humans;
Tumor Microenvironment/immunology*;
Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma/immunology*;
Immunotherapy/methods*;
Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms/immunology*;
Biomarkers, Tumor/metabolism*;
Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors/therapeutic use*
- From:
Frontiers of Medicine
2025;19(5):721-742
- CountryChina
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
The introduction of PD-1 blockades to chemotherapy and radiotherapy has shown promising outcomes in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, but anti-PD-1 therapies are only effective in a small proportion of patients, indicating the need for reliable predictive biomarkers of benefit from immunotherapy. Here, we summarized recent advances in immunotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma and studies on potential predictors that correlated with treatment response or long-term survival after immunotherapy, including biomarkers in both the tumor microenvironment and the tumor macroenvironment. Some of these biomarkers have been validated as truly predictive of immunotherapy benefit using cohorts from randomized controlled trials, while others still require further validation of their predictive value. We also summarized the challenges and future directions of biomarker studies, hopefully facilitating the development of predictive biomarkers for immunotherapy that can eventually enter clinical practice.
