RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 A new paradigm for tumor immune escape: β-catenin-driven immune exclusion JF Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer JO J Immunother Cancer FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd SP 43 DO 10.1186/s40425-015-0089-6 VO 3 IS 1 A1 Stefani Spranger A1 Thomas F. Gajewski YR 2015 UL http://jitc.bmj.com/content/3/1/43.abstract AB Increasing evidence is emerging that immunotherapeutic interventions, including checkpoint blockade, are predominantly effective in patients with a pre-existing T cell-inflamed tumor microenvironment. Understanding the mechanisms leading to a non-T cell-inflamed microenvironment are crucial for the development of novel treatment modalities to expand the fraction of patients benefiting from immunotherapy. Based on the hypothesis that one source of inter-patient heterogeneity would lie at differential activation of specific oncogene pathways within the tumor cells themselves, our group recently observed that tumor-cell intrinsic activation of the WNT/β-catenin pathway correlates with absence of T cells from the microenvironment in metastatic melanoma. Genetically-engineered mouse models confirmed a causal relationship, via a mechanism of failed Batf3-lineage dendritic cell recruitment. Hence, tumor cell-intrinsic activation of β-catenin is the first oncogenic pathway demonstrated to exclude the anti-tumor immune response, revealing a potential therapeutic target for improving immunotherapy responsiveness.Abbreviations:mAbmonoclonal antibodiesPD-1Programmed death-1CTLA-4Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4DCDendritic cellTCRT cell receptorTCGAThe Cancer Genome AtlasCCL4C-C-motive ligand 4ChIPChromatin immunoprecipitationATF3Activating transcription factor 3