Immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) has improved treatment outcomes in many cancer types and has focused attention on cancer immunity and the role of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Studies into efficacy of immunotherapy and TME are generally restricted to tumors in one anatomical location, while the histological type may have substantial influence on the contexture of the TME, perhaps more so than anatomical location, and subsequently to the response to immunotherapy. This review aims to focus on the TME in ICI-treated tumors of the same histological type, namely carcinogen-induced squamous cell carcinoma developing within the aerodigestive tract, at three locations, i.e. head and neck (HNSCC), esophagus (ESCC) and lung (LUSC).
Keywords: ICI‐response; esophagus; head and neck; lung; squamous cell carcinoma; tumor microenvironment.
© 2022 The Authors. Clinical & Translational Immunology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australian and New Zealand Society for Immunology, Inc.