Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42822444›Full record

ArticleImmunity2026

Distant lymph nodes compensate for resected tumor-draining lymph nodes during cancer immunotherapy.

Lutz Menzel, Hengbo Zhou, James W Baish, Meghan J O'Melia, Laurel B Darragh, Derek N Effiom, Emma Specht, Juliane Czapla, Pin-Ji Lei, Johanna J Rajotte and 10 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Immunity, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing 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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

20 authors.

Lutz MenzelEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Hengbo ZhouEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Koch Institute for Cancer Research and Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
James W BaishDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA 17837, USA.
Meghan J O'MeliaEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Laurel B DarraghDepartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA.
Derek N EffiomDepartment of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Emma SpechtDepartment of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Juliane CzaplaDepartment of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Pin-Ji LeiEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Johanna J RajotteEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Lingshan LiuEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Mohammad R NikmaneshiEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Mohammad S RazaviEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Matthew G Vander HeidenKoch Institute for Cancer Research and Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Jessalyn M UbellackerDepartment of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Lance L MunnEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Sana D KaramDepartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA.
Genevieve M BolandDepartment of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Sonia CohenDepartment of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
Timothy P PaderaEdwin Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA. Electronic address: tpadera@mgh.harvard.edu.

Funding

Treating recurrent HNSCC with radiation and dual TGF-Beta/PD-L1.P50CA261605 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI JIMENO, ANTONIO · 2021 to 2025
$10.1M
Understanding the role of metabolism in cancerR35CA242379 · NCI · MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY · PI VANDER HEIDEN, MATTHEW G. · 2019 to 2025
$5.8M
Tackling Treg mediated resistance to radiation and anti-PDL1 in HNSCCsR01DE028529 · NIDCR · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI SANA D KARAM · 2019 to 2026
$3.7M
Systems biology of lymphatic transportR01HL128168 · NHLBI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI MUNN, LANCE L., PADERA, TIMOTHY P · 2015 to 2019
$2.9M
Role of EphB4-ephrin-B2 interaction in regulating crosstalk between cancer cell and vascular tumor microenvironment in head and neck cancerR01DE028282 · NIDCR · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI KARAM, SANA D · 2019 to 2023
$2.4M
Targeting lymph node metastases to prevent cancer progressionR01CA214913 · NCI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI PADERA, TIMOTHY P · 2017 to 2022
$2.0M
Targeting lymph node metastases to block cancer progressionR01CA284372 · NCI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI TIMOTHY P PADERA · 2023 to 2026
$2.0M
Systems Biology of Antigen and T-Cell Transport in Cancer ImmunotherapyR01CA284603 · NCI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI Lance L. Munn, TIMOTHY P PADERA · 2023 to 2026
$1.9M
Reversing aging-induced lymphatic dysfunction to improve immune functionR21AG072205 · NIA · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI PADERA, TIMOTHY P · 2022 to 2023
$458k
A mechanistic dissection of the role of Eya3 in breast cancer metastasisK00CA234940 · NCI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI ZHOU, HENGBO · 2020 to 2023
$405k
NCI NIH HHS K00 CA234940NCI NIH HHS P50 CA261605NCI NIH HHS R01 CA214913NCI NIH HHS R01 CA284372NCI NIH HHS R01 CA284603NCI NIH HHS R35 CA242379NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL128168NIA NIH HHS R21 AG072205NIDCR NIH HHS R01 DE028282NIDCR NIH HHS R01 DE028529
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Surgical removal of tumor-draining lymph nodes (tdLNs) is commonly performed in cancer patients. Here, we investigated whether immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) responses persist after resection of tdLNs, important sites for the initiation and maintenance of anti-cancer immunity. Melanoma patients remained responsive to programmed death 1 (PD-1) blockade after regional LN dissection. Similarly, ICB efficacy persisted after tdLN resection in orthotopic murine melanoma and mammary carcinoma models. Following tdLN removal, interstitial fluid containing soluble antigen was diverted through interstitial spaces across lymphosome boundaries to distant LNs, wherein cancer-derived antigen was acquired and presented to T cells by LN-resident type I conventional dendritic cells. These responses persisted after primary tumor resection and supported ICB-induced systemic immunity. Locoregional delivery of ICB to compensatory LNs enhanced anti-cancer responses after tdLN resection. Consistently, ICB responses in head and neck cancer patients were associated with reactive LNs at distant sites. Thus, antigen rerouting enables distant LNs to compensate for resected tdLNs and sustain anti-cancer immunity, including responses enhanced by immunotherapy.

Indexed as

ImmunotherapyLymph NodesNeoplasmsAnimalsAntigens, NeoplasmCell Line, TumorDendritic CellsFemaleHumansImmune Checkpoint InhibitorsLymph Node ExcisionMiceMice, Inbred C57BLT-LymphocytesAntigens, NeoplasmImmune Checkpoint Inhibitorsantigen transportcompletion lymph node dissectionimmune checkpoint blockadeimmune therapylymph flowlymph node surgerysentinel lymph node biopsytumor-draining lymph node

Identifiers

PMID42822444
PMCPMC13684881

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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.