Targeting the Tumor Microenvironment: New Avenues for Cancer Therapy

Abstract

The tumour microenvironment (TME) has become an important part of how cancer starts, grows, and resists treatment.
The TME is not a passive background; it is made up of immune cells, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and other non-cellular
parts like extracellular matrix (ECM), cytokines, and chemokines. These non-cellular parts interact with tumour cells to
change how the cancer behaves. These relationships help with things like metastasis, angiogenesis, and avoiding the
immune system. Since most standard treatments only go after tumour cells, they do not always consider the TME's
supportive and defensive roles. This can cause therapeutic resistance and cancer to come back. Recent progress in cancer
biology and immunotherapy shows that targeting the TME could be a useful treatment strategy. Some strategies are
changing immune checkpoints, reprogramming tumor-associated macrophages, stopping cancer-associated fibroblasts,
restoring normalcy to the tumor's blood vessels, and changing the TME's metabolic and mechanical qualities. Also, drug
delivery methods based on nanotechnology look like a good way to precisely target the TME while lowering the systemic
toxicity. Even with these improvements, there are still problems because the TME is heterogeneous and changes over time,
there are risks of immunotoxicity, and we need strong biomarkers to predict how well a treatment will work. This research
work gives an in-depth study at the TME's parts and how they work, as well as new and existing treatment options, the
problems they cause, and where they might go in the future. A drastic change has happened in oncology with the discovery
of the TME. When mixed with traditional and personalised therapies, it could make cancer easier to treat or even cure