Cancer is a systemic disease marked by disrupted immune responses. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a key role in the tumor microenvironment by capturing tumor antigens and activating T cells to kill cancer cells. Among them, type 1 conventional DCs (cDC1s) are crucial for initiating antitumor immunity but are rare within tumors, limiting their therapeutic use. A recent study by Ascic et al. demonstrates that cancer cells can be reprogrammed in vivo into cDC1-like antigen-presenting cells, capable of activating T cells and enhancing antitumor responses—offering a new strategy to overcome the scarcity of natural cDC1s and advance DC-based immunotherapy.
More reading: DOI: 10.1126/science.ads6228
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