The dual role of complement in cancer and its implication in anti-tumor therapy

open access- Annals of Translational Medicine

 (technical)

Review Article July 2016

The dual role of complement in cancer and its implication in anti-tumor therapy
 

Ioannis Kourtzelis¹, Stavros Rafail²

¹Department of Clinical Pathobiochemistry, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany; ²Ovarian Cancer Research Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA

Contributions: (I) Conception and design: All authors; (II) Administrative support: None; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: None; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: None; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: None; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors.

Correspondence to: Stavros Rafail. Ovarian Cancer Research Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA. Email: srafail@upenn.edu; Ioannis Kourtzelis. Department of Clinical Pathobiochemistry, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany

 

Abstract: Chronic inflammation has been linked to the initiation of carcinogenesis, as well as the advancement of established tumors. The polarization of the tumor inflammatory microenvironment can contribute to either the control, or the progression of the disease. The emerging participation of members of the complement cascade in several hallmarks of cancer, renders it a potential target for anti-tumor treatment. Moreover, the presence of complement regulatory proteins (CRPs) in most types of tumor cells is known to impede anti-tumor therapies. This review focuses on our current knowledge of complement’s potential involvement in shaping the inflammatory tumor microenvironment and its role on the regulation of angiogenesis and hypoxia. Furthermore, we discuss approaches using complement-based therapies as an adjuvant in tumor immunotherapy.

Keywords: Anaphylatoxins; antibody therapy; cancer immunotherapy; complement dependent cytotoxicity