Abstract
Oncolytic viruses are naturally occurring or genetically engineered viruses that can replicate preferentially in tumor cells and inhibit tumor growth. These viruses have been considered an effective anticancer strategy in recent years. They mainly function by direct oncolysis, inducing an anticancer immune response and expressing exogenous effector genes. Their multifunctional characteristics indicate good application prospects as cancer therapeutics, especially in combination with other therapies, such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Therefore, it is necessary to comprehensively understand the utility of oncolytic viruses in cancer therapeutics. Here, we review the characteristics, antitumor mechanisms, clinical applications, deficiencies and associated solutions, and future prospects of oncolytic viruses.
Highlights
Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide with increased number of cases and cancer deaths
These cytokines play a critical role in the recruitment and activation of innate immune cells, such as dendritic cells (DCs) and natural killer (NK) cells, which can reverse the immunosuppressive microenvironment in tumors
The results indicated that oncolytic viruses carrying the IL-2 and TNF-α genes could increase the frequency of CD4+ and CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and strengthen the persistence and proliferation of T cells
Summary
Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide with increased number of cases and cancer deaths. According to estimates by the WHO, in the 20 years, the number of global cancer cases may increase by 60%, and cancer is a huge burden on society worldwide (Siegel et al, 2021). Several strategies such as immunotherapy and targeted therapy have been developed and have shown the potential to improve the outcome of numerous malignancies. Oncolytic viruses are a novel type of multimechanistic therapeutic agent for cancer treatment and have the advantages of immunotherapy and targeted therapy (Kaufman et al, 2016). Modifying the genome of the oncolytic virus improves its tumor-targeting capability and oncolytic potential. We discuss combinatorial strategies with other traditional treatments and immunotherapies and the challenges of oncolytic virotherapy
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