Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42734903›Full record

ReviewCancer2026

Top advances of the year in autologous cellular therapy in melanoma and solid tumors.

Kimberly Loo, Allison S Betof

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Cancer, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Kimberly LooWeill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA.
Allison S BetofStanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0238-7133

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The year 2025 marked significant advances in autologous cellular therapy for melanoma and solid tumors, building on landmark regulatory approvals in 2024. Lifileucel, the first Food and Drug Administration-approved tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy for advanced melanoma, demonstrated durable efficacy in the 5-year analysis of the C-144-01 trial, with an objective response rate (ORR) of 31.4% and prolonged responses in a heavily pretreated population. Real world data further supported its effectiveness, with higher ORR likely reflecting earlier lines of therapy and differences in patient selection. Preferentially expressed antigen in melanoma (PRAME)-targeted T-cell receptor (TCR) T-cell therapy (anzu-cel, IMA203) showed promising activity in a phase 1 study, with ORR of approximately 50% in checkpoint inhibitor refractory melanoma, durable responses, and manageable toxicity, validating PRAME as a high value target across multiple tumor types. Next-generation engineered TIL approaches emerged to address limitations of high-dose IL-2. OBX-115, an IL-2 independent TIL platform expressing membrane-bound IL-15 regulated by acetazolamide, demonstrated early clinical activity with ORR of 67% in initial phase 1 data. Additional strategies, including CRISPR-mediated gene editing and checkpoint disruption, highlight a shift toward programmable, self-sustaining cellular therapies. Personalized neoantigen-based therapies advanced with early clinical validation of adoptive T-cell platforms and mRNA vaccines, demonstrating immune activation and improved recurrence-free survival in melanoma. Finally, afamitresgene autoleucel (afami-cel), a MAGE-A4 directed TCR-T therapy, showed durable efficacy in synovial sarcoma and expanding activity across solid tumors, establishing proof of concept for TCR-T approaches. Collectively, these advances position autologous cellular therapy as an evolving standard of care in melanoma and a promising modality across solid tumors, with ongoing efforts focused on improving accessibility, overcoming resistance, and optimizing combinatorial strategies.

Indexed as

Cell- and Tissue-Based TherapyImmunotherapy, AdoptiveMelanomaNeoplasmsAntigens, NeoplasmHumansLymphocytes, Tumor-InfiltratingAntigens, Neoplasmcellular therapymelanomasolid tumor

Identifiers

PMID42734903
PMCPMC13573839

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.