Precision immunity: Immunoscore and neoadjuvant treatment in bladder cancer

Oncoimmunology. 2021 Feb 17;10(1):1888488. doi: 10.1080/2162402X.2021.1888488.

Abstract

This review details the clinical utility of Immunoscore, measuring the immune response to cancer within the tumor microenvironment, in bladder cancer. Immunoscore was recently introduced into ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines for gastrointestinal cancer and into the WHO classification of the Digestive System Tumors. In muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), the standard-of-care treatment is neo-adjuvant chemotherapy and cystectomy. However, only 50% of the patients are still alive at 5 years. The degree of histologic response positively correlated with Immunoscore and patients at lower risk of relapse or death were associated with a high-Immunoscore. Immunoscore is also predicting response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy-based treatment in several indications. This paves the way for the use of Immunoscore in clinical practice not only in gastrointestinal tumors but also in bladder cancer, and beyond.

Keywords: Immunoscore; MIBC; bladder cancer; cancer classification; chemotherapy; immunity; immuno-oncology; neoadjuvant; predictive; prognosis; surgery; tumor microenvironment.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Chemotherapy, Adjuvant
  • Cystectomy
  • Humans
  • Neoadjuvant Therapy*
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
  • Tumor Microenvironment
  • Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* / drug therapy

Grants and funding

The work was supported by INSERM, AP-HP, University Paris Descartes, the Cancéropole Ile-de-France, the Cancer Research for Personalized Medicine (CARPEM), Paris Alliance of Cancer Research Institutes (PACRI), the LabEx Immuno-Oncology, the National Cancer Institute of France [INCa; ref 2012-218], HalioDx for Immunoscore®, La Ligue Contre le Cancer, Association pour la Recherche contre le Cancer (ARC) and FONCER Contre le Cancer grant.