Driving modular CARs through solid tumours and their microenvironment - a new era in cancer immunotherapy

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies are undoubtedly a promising approach in cancer immunotherapy and have revolutionized the treatment options for hematologic malignancies. Yet, their effectiveness is more limited and challenging when it comes to tackling solid tumours. Antigen escape, on-target off-tumour effects, and the immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment (TME) of solid tumours are among the main hurdles. Aiming for increased clinical safety and effectiveness, our group works with the adaptor CAR T-cell technologies named UniCAR and RevCAR. The versatility of the adaptor molecules used in these types of approaches allows not only the targeting of antigens expressed on the surface of tumour cells but also of key molecules expressed on immunosuppressive cells as well as immune checkpoint inhibitors. Given the features of such approaches and the ease in engineering the adaptor molecules, combinatorial targeting can be exploited to pave the way for improved and personalized immunotherapies.