Targeting STAT3 in Cancer Immunotherapy

• Published in: Molecular cancer Vol. 19; no. 1; pp. 1 - 145
• Main Authors: Zou, Sailan, Tong, Qiyu, Liu, Bowen, Huang, Wei, Tian, Yan, Fu, Xianghui
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central Ltd 24-09-2020; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Angiogenesis; Apoptosis; Cancer; Cancer immunotherapy; Cancer therapies; Cancer treatment; CAR-T; Cell growth; Cytokines; Deoxyribonucleic acid; Development and progression; DNA; DNA methylation; Gene expression; Health aspects; Immune checkpoint blockade; Immune response; Immunoregulation; Immunosuppression; Immunotherapy; Kinases; Medical prognosis; Metastasis; Phosphorylation; Proteins; Review; Signal transduction; STAT3; Stat3 protein; Transcription; Tumorigenesis
• ISSN: 1476-4598; 1476-4598
• DOI: 10.1186/s12943-020-01258-7

As a point of convergence for numerous oncogenic signaling pathways, signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is central in regulating the anti-tumor immune response. STAT3 is broadly hyperactivated both in cancer and non-cancerous cells within the tumor ecosystem and plays important roles in inhibiting the expression of crucial immune activation regulators and promoting the production of immunosuppressive factors. Therefore, targeting the STAT3 signaling pathway has emerged as a promising therapeutic strategy for numerous cancers. In this review, we outline the importance of STAT3 signaling pathway in tumorigenesis and its immune regulation, and highlight the current status for the development of STAT3-targeting therapeutic approaches. We also summarize and discuss recent advances in STAT3-based combination immunotherapy in detail. These endeavors provide new insights into the translational application of STAT3 in cancer and may contribute to the promotion of more effective treatments toward malignancies.