Immune Microenvironment in Childhood Cancers: Characteristics and Therapeutic Challenges.

Simple Summary: The immune microenvironment surrounding a growing tumor is complex and diverse. Understanding this complexity is crucial for predicting prognosis and response to cancer therapy. Various immune cells, signaling molecules, and extracellular matrix components within this microenvironment interact intricately, influencing tumor progression and treatment effectiveness. A deeper understanding of these interactions can lead to better prognostic markers and more effective, personalized therapeutic strategies. Compared to adults, the pediatric tumor immune microenvironment is less studied. Research on different pediatric tumors has shown that regulatory signaling networks between tumors and surrounding immune cells are critical in shifting the balance between pro- and anti-tumor immune responses. Therefore, gaining insights into the tumor immune composition is key to improving the efficacy of various pediatric cancer therapies, particularly immunotherapies that enhance host anti-tumor immunity. The tumor immune microenvironment is pivotal in cancer initiation, advancement, and regulation. Its molecular and cellular composition is critical throughout the disease, as it can influence the balance between suppressive and cytotoxic immune responses within the tumor's vicinity. Studies on the tumor immune microenvironment have enriched our understanding of the intricate interplay between tumors and their immunological surroundings in various human cancers. These studies illuminate the role of significant components of the immune microenvironment, which have not been extensively explored in pediatric tumors before and may influence the responsiveness or resistance to therapeutic agents. Our deepening understanding of the pediatric tumor immune microenvironment is helping to overcome challenges related to the effectiveness of existing therapeutic strategies, including immunotherapies. Although in the early stages, targeted therapies that modulate the tumor immune microenvironment of pediatric solid tumors hold promise for improved outcomes. Focusing on various aspects of tumor immune biology in pediatric patients presents a therapeutic opportunity that could improve treatment outcomes. This review offers a comprehensive examination of recent literature concerning profiling the immune microenvironment in various pediatric tumors. It seeks to condense research findings on characterizing the immune microenvironment in pediatric tumors and its impact on tumor development, metastasis, and response to therapeutic modalities. It covers the immune microenvironment's role in tumor development, interactions with tumor cells, and its impact on the tumor's response to immunotherapy. The review also discusses challenges targeting the immune microenvironment for pediatric cancer therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]