Quality Is King: Fundamental Insights into Tumor Antigenicity from Virus-Associated Merkel Cell Carcinoma.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-13-2021
Publication Title
The Journal of investigative dermatology
Keywords
washington; seattle; swedish cancer
Abstract
Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare skin malignancy that is a paradigm cancer for solid tumor immunotherapy. MCCs associated with Merkel cell polyomavirus (virus-positive MCC [VP-MCC]) or chronic UV exposure (virus-negative MCC [VN-MCC]) are anti-PD(L)1 responsive, despite VP-MCC's low mutational burden. This suggests that antigen quality, not merely mutation quantity, dictates immunotherapy responsiveness, and cell-based therapies targeting optimal antigens may be effective. Despite VP-MCC's antigenic homogeneity, diverse T-cell infiltration patterns are observed, implying microenvironment plasticity and multifactorial contributions to immune recognition. Moreover, VP-MCC exemplifies how antitumor adaptive immunity can provide tumor burden biomarkers for early detection and disease monitoring.
Clinical Institute
Cancer
Department
Oncology
Department
Dermatology
Recommended Citation
Lahman, Miranda C; Paulson, Kelly G; Nghiem, Paul T; and Chapuis, Aude G, "Quality Is King: Fundamental Insights into Tumor Antigenicity from Virus-Associated Merkel Cell Carcinoma." (2021). Articles, Abstracts, and Reports. 4769.
https://digitalcommons.providence.org/publications/4769
