Research Progress on the Tumor Immune Microenvironment and Immune Escape Mechanisms in Lung Cancer

Southwest Medical University, 646000 Sichuan Province, China

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Abstract

Lung cancer is currently one of the most prevalent and deadly malignant tumors worldwide. For advanced patients, traditional treatment methods have not shown significant effects. Although immunotherapy has improved the survival rate of some patients, 70% to 85% of them still develop primary or acquired immune resistance, and the exact molecular mechanisms of this phenomenon remains unclear. This article summarizes the main regulatory mechanisms of anti-tumor immune responses in lung cancer, including the synergistic effect between innate immunity and adaptive immunity, the related regulatory pathways of immune checkpoints, the formation process of the immune-suppressive microenvironment in lung cancer, and discusses the relationship between immune escape and immune resistance, as well as current challenges such as unclear regulatory mechanisms of drug resistance and insufficient clinical sample validation. Based on this, it is proposed that in the future, combined with precision medicine technology, new immune treatment targets can be sought to promote the development of lung cancer immunotherapy towards a more precise and individualized direction. This article can provide certain theoretical references for the clinical management and immunotherapy of lung cancer, and also offer ideas for the research of immunotherapy for other tumors.