Emerging immunologic approaches as cancer anti‑angiogenic therapies

• Mohammadreza Azimi ^[1] ; Mahdokht Sadat Manavi ^[8] ; Maral Afshinpour ^[2] ; Roya Khorram ^[3] ; Reza Vafadar ^[4] ; Fatemeh Rezaei Tazangi ^[5] ; Danyal Arabzadeh ^[9] ; Sattar Arabzadeh ^[9] ; Nasim Ebrahimi ^[6] ; Amir Reza Aref ^[7]
  1. [1] Islamic Azad University

     Islamic Azad University

     Irán

     
  2. [2] South Dakota State University

     South Dakota State University

     City of Brookings, Estados Unidos

     
  3. [3] Shiraz University of Medical Sciences

     Shiraz University of Medical Sciences

     Irán

     
  4. [4] Kerman University of Medical Sciences

     Kerman University of Medical Sciences

     Irán

     
  5. [5] Fasa University of Medical Sciences

     Fasa University of Medical Sciences

     Irán

     
  6. [6] University of Isfahan

     University of Isfahan

     Irán

     
  7. [7] Harvard Medical School

     Harvard Medical School

     City of Boston, Estados Unidos

     
  8. [8] Otolaryngology Department, Tehran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran
  9. [9] Xi’an Jaiotong University Medical Campus, Xi’an Jaiotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China

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• Localización: Clinical & translational oncology, ISSN 1699-048X, Vol. 27, Nº. 4, 2025, págs. 1406-1425
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Targeting tumor angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels supporting cancer growth and spread, has been an intense focus for therapy development. However, benefts from anti-angiogenic drugs like bevacizumab have been limited by resistance stemming from activation of compensatory pathways. Recent immunotherapy advances have sparked interest in novel immunologic approaches that can induce more durable vascular pruning and overcome limitations of existing angiogenesis inhibitors. This review comprehensively examines these emerging strategies, including modulating tumor-associated macrophages, therapeutic cancer vaccines, engineered nanobodies and T cells, anti-angiogenic cytokines/chemokines, and immunomodulatory drugs like thalidomide analogs. For each approach, the molecular mechanisms, preclinical/clinical data, and potential advantages over conventional drugs are discussed. Innovative therapeutic platforms like nanoparticle delivery systems are explored. Moreover, the importance of combining agents with distinct mechanisms to prevent resistance is evaluated. As tumors hijack angiogenesis for growth, harnessing the immune system’s specifcity to disrupt this process represents a promising anti-cancer strategy covered by this review.