Specificity may be overrated in cancer immunotherapy: Getting to know the nonspecific side of memory T Cells.

For a long time, cancer immunotherapy has focused on the induction of tumor-specific T cell-mediated immune responses. Now, a mounting body of evidence indicates that efficient anticancer immune responses also rely on innate immunity. Tietze et al. have recently elucidated an antigen-nonspecific role for memory CD8(+) T cells in cytokine-based cancer immunotherapy.