Cancers, Vol. 15, Pages 3655: Immunobiology and Cytokine Modulation of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Microenvironment: A Scoping Review

Cancers, Vol. 15, Pages 3655: Immunobiology and Cytokine Modulation of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Microenvironment: A Scoping Review

Cancers doi: 10.3390/cancers15143655

Authors: Shreya Budhiraja Hinda Najem Shashwat Tripathi Nitin R. Wadhawani Craig Horbinski Matthew McCord Alicia C. Lenzen Amy B. Heimberger Michael DeCuypere

Utilizing a Scoping Review strategy in the domain of immune biology to identify immune therapeutic targets, knowledge gaps for implementing immune therapeutic strategies for pediatric brain tumors was assessed. The analysis demonstrated limited efforts to date to characterize and understand the immunological aspects of tumor biology with an over-reliance on observations from the adult glioma population. Foundational knowledge regarding the frequency and ubiquity of immune therapeutic targets is an area of unmet need along with the development of immune-competent pediatric tumor models to test therapeutics and especially combinatorial treatment. Opportunities arise in the evolution of pediatric tumor classification from histological to molecular with targeted immune therapeutics.