Abstract A034: Cancer and immunology: The homeostasis dance


 The human body is made up of not only tissues and blood, but also present are microbiota on surfaces of the skin, mucosal membrane of the intestine, urogenital, lungs, and mouth, to form ecological niches. Some of these niches have been well studied, while some are yet to be elucidated due to the unknown presence of these microbiota in such system. T cell response by immune system is one step of the cancer-immunity cycle, that maintains the prevention of autoimmunity. Cancer cells have T cell inhibitory signals including PD-L1 which have been identified for the development of new immunotherapy that are specifically responsible for hindering immune effector inhibition, thereby reinvigorating, and enhancing pre-existing anticancer immune response. Previous activity in immune therapies have always considered suppressive factors in the tumor microenvironment without consideration to other factors such as the genetic basis of the immune system. Attention to the immune system has always been on the response to the pathogens, or the threatening foreign target, but not on the genes responsible for regulating the immune system. The immune system is a concert of interactions between existing microbes and host. One of the major tools of cellular interaction is epigenetics. Epigenetic information regulates differentiation and development, thus can impact on pathological condition. Therefore, epigenetics interaction between microbes and host is vital in cancer development and treatment. Diagnostic and prognosis will be impacted by the understanding of the interactions between microbes and host, thereby informing on precision medicine.
 Citation Format: Bene Akromaa Ekine-Afolabi. Cancer and immunology: The homeostasis dance [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Colorectal Cancer; 2022 Oct 1-4; Portland, OR. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(23 Suppl_1):Abstract nr A034.