Immunotherapy for EBV-Associated Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Crit Rev Oncog. 2018;23(3-4):219-234. doi: 10.1615/CritRevOncog.2018027528.

Abstract

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is one of the most common head and neck malignancies in southern China and Southeast Asia. Unfortunately, 70% of NPC patients have locally advanced disease at the first diagnosis. Radiotherapy alone and concurrent chemoradiotherapy are important treatment approaches for NPC, but they have a limited effect on patients with locally advanced or distantly metastatic disease. 1-5 Nevertheless, the unique immune environment of the EBV-associated NPC provides rational targets for immunotherapy. Diverse types of immunotherapies are actively being studied, including adoptive immunotherapy, therapeutic vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors, lytic-induction therapy, and viral immunotherapy. Specifically, adoptive immunotherapy with lymphocyte infusion was well tolerated and effective in 71.4% of patients combined with first-line chemotherapy. Several therapeutic vaccines and PD-1/PD-L1 pathway checkpoint inhibitors have shown promising clinic outcomes at phase I/II clinical trials. Moreover, EBV-lytic inducing therapy and viral immunotherapy for NPC are also being investigated. In this review, we summarized the current status, advantages, and disadvantages of each immunotherapy for EBV-associated NPC, which may shed light on developing safer and more effective treatment modalities in the future.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cancer Vaccines / immunology
  • Cancer Vaccines / therapeutic use
  • Cell Transformation, Viral
  • Cytokine-Induced Killer Cells / immunology
  • Cytokine-Induced Killer Cells / metabolism
  • Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / complications*
  • Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / immunology
  • Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / virology*
  • Herpesvirus 4, Human* / physiology
  • Host-Pathogen Interactions / immunology
  • Humans
  • Immunomodulation
  • Immunotherapy* / adverse effects
  • Immunotherapy* / methods
  • Immunotherapy, Adoptive
  • Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating / immunology
  • Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating / metabolism
  • Molecular Targeted Therapy / methods
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma / diagnosis
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma / etiology*
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma / therapy*

Substances

  • Cancer Vaccines