Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Quaranta, Valeria
• Ballarò, Costanza
• Giannelli, Gianluigi

Titel

Macrophages Orchestrate the Liver Tumor Microenvironment

Ist Teil von

• Cancers, 2024-05, Vol.16 (9), p.1772

Ort / Verlag

Switzerland: MDPI AG

Erscheinungsjahr

2024

Quelle

EZB Electronic Journals Library

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Liver cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality. Hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma are the most common types, and despite numerous advances, therapeutic options still remain poor for these cancer patients. Tumor development and progression strictly depend on a supportive tumor microenvironment (TME). Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are the most abundant immune cells population within a tumorigenic liver; they sustain cancer cells' growth and invasiveness, and their presence is correlated with a poor prognosis. Furthermore, TAM cross-talk with cells and components of the TME promotes immunosuppression, a desmoplastic response, and angiogenesis. In this review, we summarize the latest advances in understanding TAM heterogeneity and function, with a particular focus on TAM modulation of the TME. We also discuss the potential of targeting macrophage subpopulations and how this is now being exploited in current clinical trials for the treatment of liver cancer.