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ABSTRACT
If there is a great new hope in the treatment of cancer, the immune system is it. Innate and adaptive immunity either promote or attenuate tumorigenesis and so can have opposing effects on the therapeutic outcome. Originally described as potent antivirals, Type-I interferons (IFNs) were quickly recognized as central coordinators of tumor-immune system interactions. Type-I-IFNs are produced by, and act on, both tumor and immune cells being either host-protecting or tumor-promoting. Here, we discuss Type-I-IFNs in infectious and cancer diseases highlighting their dichotomous role and raising the importance to deeply understand the underlying mechanisms so to reshape the way we can exploit Type-I-IFNs therapeutically.
Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest
No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.
Funding
RDM is supported by the AIRC (5 per Mille #9979), and the Fondo per gli Investimenti della Ricerca di Base, (FIRB #RBAP11WCRZ-005 U54 2010). IV is supported by the AIRC (MFAG 2013 #14641), Ministero Italiano della Salute (RF_GR-2011–02351355), and the Programma per i Giovani Ricercatori “Rita Levi Montalcini” 2010. AS is supported by the AIRC (Start-Up 2016 #18418) and Ministero Italiano della Salute (RF_ GR-2013–02357273).