Combining targeted therapy with immunotherapy (interferon-α)

Abstract

Imatinib revolutionized gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) treatment but median-progression-free-survival of unresectable/metastatic disease is < 2 y. B-RAF^V600-mutated-melanoma responds to vemurafenib dramatically but median-progression-free-survival is < 9 mo. Combining imatinib with immunotherapy (peginterferon α-2b) in GIST showed significant induction of antitumor immunity and highly promising clinical outcomes. This strategy warrants further testing in other malignancies.

Keywords: :

• drug-resistance
• gastrointestinal stromal tumor
• imatinib
• immunotherapy
• interferon-α
• peginterferon α-2b
• targeted therapy