Cancer Immunotherapy for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Abstract

Endemic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is associated with Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) type II latent infection, and tumor cells expressing such viral antigens are attractive targets for treatment. As tumor cell survival is dependent on their ability to evade T-cell immunity, immunotherapy in NPC traditionally focuses on restoration of T-cell population and function in EBV antigen recognition. However, recent success of immune-oncology in other cancers has also fueled research in NPC. In this chapter, we shall review the various immunotherapy approaches including adoptive cell therapy, therapeutic vaccine targeting EBV, and non-EBV-based approaches such as checkpoint inhibitors. Results from different clinical trials are presented. The gaps and challenges in immunotherapy for NPC are also discussed.