Emerging Role of Gene Therapy in Cancer

Abstract

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the world, and researchers have been persistently studying the treatment of cancer. Although traditional treatment methods such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are effective, they are often accompanied by serious side effects, drug resistance or limited effects on certain types of cancer. Therefore, it is urgent to develop more accurate and effective treatment plans. Cancer gene therapy is an innovative method to treat or prevent cancer by introducing or editing genetic material. Gene therapy brings new hope to the treatment of cancer, repairing mutant genes, activating the immune system or directly inducing cancer cell death. This review introduces some hot strategies of cancer gene therapy, including suicide gene therapy, tumor suppressor gene activation, immunotherapy, inhibition of oncogene activation, antiangiogenic gene therapy. The principles, application examples and advantages and disadvantages of these therapies in clinical research are also discussed. In addition, the challenges faced by gene therapy in improving safety and reducing side effects, and points out the direction of future research are also described, aiming to promote the transformation of these innovative therapies into conventional clinical applications.