Projects & Grants
| Comprehensive Expression Evaluation and Clinical Relevance of Immune Checkpoints in OSCC | |
|---|---|
| Project Id | SGS11/LF/2025 |
| Main solver | Mgr. Adam Krayzel |
| Period | 1/2025 - 12/2025 |
| Provider | Specifický VŠ výzkum |
| State | solved |
| Anotation | Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), a subtype of head and neck cancers (HNSCC), originates primarily in the epithelial tissues of the oral cavity (Gormley, 2022). It ranks as the sixteenth most common cancer globally and is the second most prevalent in high-risk regions such as South Asia (Sung, 2020). The primary risk factors for OSCC include smoking and excessive alcohol consumption (Hashibe, 2007). In contrast, the increasing incidence of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas in Western countries is associated with infection by oncogenic strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) (Mehanna, 2013). Despite advancements in diagnostics and treatment, the five-year survival rate for OSCC remains bellow 50%, primarily due to delayed diagnosis (Mauceri, 2022). Tumor cells forming carcinomas are in constant interaction with their surrounding environment, known as the tumor microenvironment (TME), which significantly influences their growth and their response to targeted therapies, including immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) (Petitprez, 2020). Immune checkpoints are molecules expressed on the surface of cells that regulate the immune response and protect healthy cells from being attacked by the immune system (Meng, 2024). Checkpoint inhibitors (CPI), widely used in cancer immunotherapy, target these molecules and restore antitumor immunity (Wang, 2022). While several CPIs have been approved for various types of cancer, only one - anti-PD-1 is currently approved for HNSCC (Devaraja, 2023; Malone, 2018). The aim of this project is to identify novel immune checkpoints expressed on the surface of OSCC tumor cells that could serve as potential targets for immunotherapy. The discovery of these checkpoints may contribute to improved therapeutic strategies, enhanced patient survival, and better quality of life for those affected by OSCC. |
