Cancer Epigenetics, Tumor Immunity, and Immunotherapy

Epigenetic mechanisms affect all aspects of the cancer–immunity cycle. Some epigenetic targeting strategies are novel immunotherapies. Epigenetic drugs could have synergistic effects with current cancer therapies, including immunotherapies, and prevent resistance to current cancer therapies. Epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone post-translational modifications, and chromatin structure regulation, are critical for the interactions between tumor and immune cells. Emerging evidence shows that tumors commonly hijack various epigenetic mechanisms to escape immune restriction. As a result, the pharmaceutical modulation of epigenetic regulators, including ‘writers’, ‘readers’, ‘erasers’, and ‘remodelers’, is able to normalize the impaired immunosurveillance and/or trigger antitumor immune responses. Thus, epigenetic targeting agents are attractive immunomodulatory drugs and will have major impacts on immuno-oncology. Here, we discuss epigenetic regulators of the cancer–immunity cycle and current advances in developing epigenetic therapies to boost anticancer immune responses, either alone or in combination with current immunotherapies. Epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone post-translational modifications, and chromatin structure regulation, are critical for the interactions between tumor and immune cells. Emerging evidence shows that tumors commonly hijack various epigenetic mechanisms to escape immune restriction. As a result, the pharmaceutical modulation of epigenetic regulators, including ‘writers’, ‘readers’, ‘erasers’, and ‘remodelers’, is able to normalize the impaired immunosurveillance and/or trigger antitumor immune responses. Thus, epigenetic targeting agents are attractive immunomodulatory drugs and will have major impacts on immuno-oncology. Here, we discuss epigenetic regulators of the cancer–immunity cycle and current advances in developing epigenetic therapies to boost anticancer immune responses, either alone or in combination with current immunotherapies.