State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200032, China.
Front Med. 2017 Dec;11(4):509-521. doi: 10.1007/s11684-017-0546-3. Epub 2017 Aug 5.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is currently the fifth most common malignancy and the third leading cause of cancer-related mortalities worldwide. In the last few years, treatments for HCC have significantly improved from a mere surgical resection to a series of minimally invasive therapies and targeted drugs. However, recurrence frequently occurs even upon curative therapeutics, and drug therapies generally produce disappointing results, with the overall prognosis dismal. This challenging clinical scenario warrants new effective and life-prolonging strategies for patients with HCC. Compelling evidence suggests that NK cells play a critical role in the immune function of the liver and in the immune defenses against HCC, indicating that HCC might be an ideal target for NK cell-based immunotherapies. To obtain comprehensive insights into the putative influence of NK cells on HCC, this paper summarizes current knowledge on NK cells in HCC and discusses the usefulness and prospects of NK cell-based immunotherapies. Critical issues that require consideration for the successful clinical translation of NK cell-based therapies are also addressed. If appropriately used and further optimized, NK cell-based therapies could dominate important roles in the future immunotherapeutic market of HCC.
肝细胞癌（HCC）是目前全球第五大常见恶性肿瘤和第三大癌症相关死亡原因。在过去的几年中，HCC 的治疗方法已经从单纯的手术切除显著改善为一系列微创治疗和靶向药物治疗。然而，即使在根治性治疗后，复发仍经常发生，而且药物治疗通常效果不佳，整体预后较差。这种具有挑战性的临床情况需要为 HCC 患者提供新的有效和延长生命的策略。有强有力的证据表明 NK 细胞在肝脏的免疫功能和对 HCC 的免疫防御中发挥着关键作用，这表明 HCC 可能是 NK 细胞为基础的免疫疗法的理想靶点。为了全面了解 NK 细胞对 HCC 的潜在影响，本文总结了 NK 细胞在 HCC 中的现有知识，并讨论了 NK 细胞为基础的免疫疗法的实用性和前景。还讨论了 NK 细胞为基础的治疗成功临床转化所需考虑的关键问题。如果得到适当的应用和进一步优化，NK 细胞为基础的疗法可能在 HCC 的未来免疫治疗市场中占据重要地位。
