The incidence of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has doubled in the developed world within the last fifty years, and now it is responsible for 2-3% of diagnosed cancers. The delay in diagnosis and the not fully understood pathogenesis are the main challenges that have to be overcome. It seems that extracellular vesicles (EVs) are one of the key players in tumor development since they ensure a proper microenvironment for the tumor cells. The stimulation of angiogenesis and immunosuppression is mediated by molecules contained in EVs. It was shown that EVs derived from cancer cells can inhibit T cell proliferation, natural killer lymphocyte activation, and dendritic cell maturation by this mechanism. Moreover, EVs may be a biomarker for the response to anti-cancer treatment. In this review, we sum up the knowledge about the role of EVs in RCC pathogenesis and show their future perspectives in this field.
Keywords: cancer immunology; cancer-induced immunosuppression; diagnosis; exosomes; extracellular vesicles; prognostic factor; renal cell carcinoma.