Praveen K. Bommareddy

TL;DR: Oncolytic viruses can target multiple steps in the cancer–immunity cycle and can be engineered to express therapeutic genes and, as a result, can be usefully integrated in combination cancer immunotherapies.

TL;DR: The optimal selection of patients for oncolytic virus immunotherapy is discussed and how therapy is optimally delivered is described, which will likely include combination T- VEC clinical trials, expansion of T-VEC to other types of non-melanoma skin cancers, and renewed efforts at oncoleytic virus drug development with other viruses.

TL;DR: It is reported that unadjuvanted seasonal influenza vaccination via intratumoral, but not intramuscular, injection converts “cold” tumors to hot, generates systemic CD8+ T cell-mediated antitumor immunity, and sensitizes resistant tumors to checkpoint blockade, and proposes that antipathogen vaccines may be utilized for both infection prevention and repurposing as a cancer immunotherapy.

TL;DR: The natural characteristics and genetically engineered modifications that enhance the effectiveness of oncolytic viruses for the treatment of cancer are reviewed.

TL;DR: Combining oncolytic virus and a MEK inhibitor augments immune-mediated therapeutic responses in melanoma and enhances sensitivity to PD-1 blockade in mice, suggesting that combining these treatments may be beneficial for patients with melanoma.