Cancer letters
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Therapy that targets programmed death 1 or programmed death 1 ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1), which are known as immune checkpoints, has been recently rapidly developing as oncotherapy for various carcinomas. However, this therapy has a poor effect on the treatment of pancreatic cancer with PD-1/PD-L1 blockade monotherapy. In this review, the development and limitations of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monotherapy in pancreatic cancer are discussed. We then consider the underlying mechanism of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monotherapy failure, combination strategies overcoming resistance to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy and the prospect of targeting PD-1/PD-L1 for the immunotherapy of pancreatic cancer.
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Exosomes are 30-100 nm small membrane vesicles of endocytic origin that are secreted by all types of cells, and can also be found in various body fluids. Increasing evidence implicates that exosomes confer stability and can deliver their cargos such as proteins and nucleic acids to specific cell types, which subsequently serve as important messengers and carriers in lung carcinogenesis. ⋯ In addition, we also discuss current challenges that might impede the clinical use of exosomes. Further studies on the functional roles of exosomes in lung cancer requires thorough research.