The tumor immune microenvironment is pivotal in cancer initiation, advancement, and regulation. Its molecular and cellular composition is critical throughout the disease, as it can influence the balance between suppressive and cytotoxic immune responses within the tumor’s vicinity. Studies on the tumor immune microenvironment have enriched our understanding of the intricate interplay between tumors and their immunological surroundings in various human cancers. These studies illuminate the role of significant components of the immune microenvironment, which have not been extensively explored in pediatric tumors before and may influence the responsiveness or resistance to therapeutic agents. Our deepening understanding of the pediatric tumor immune microenvironment is helping to overcome challenges related to the effectiveness of existing therapeutic strategies, including immunotherapies. Although in the early stages, targeted therapies that modulate the tumor immune microenvironment of pediatric solid tumors hold promise for improved outcomes. Focusing on various aspects of tumor immune biology in pediatric patients presents a therapeutic opportunity that could improve treatment outcomes. This review offers a comprehensive examination of recent literature concerning profiling the immune microenvironment in various pediatric tumors. It seeks to condense research findings on characterizing the immune microenvironment in pediatric tumors and its impact on tumor development, metastasis, and response to therapeutic modalities. It covers the immune microenvironment’s role in tumor development, interactions with tumor cells, and its impact on the tumor’s response to immunotherapy. The review also discusses challenges targeting the immune microenvironment for pediatric cancer therapies.
肿瘤免疫微环境在癌症的发生、发展和调控中起着关键作用。其分子和细胞组成在整个疾病进程中至关重要，因为它能够影响肿瘤区域内抑制性与细胞毒性免疫反应之间的平衡。对肿瘤免疫微环境的研究丰富了我们对多种人类癌症中肿瘤与其免疫环境之间复杂相互作用的理解。这些研究阐明了免疫微环境中重要组成部分的作用，这些成分在儿童肿瘤中尚未得到广泛探索，并可能影响对治疗药物的反应性或耐药性。我们对儿童肿瘤免疫微环境日益深入的理解，正有助于克服与现有治疗策略（包括免疫疗法）有效性相关的挑战。尽管尚处于早期阶段，但调节儿童实体瘤肿瘤免疫微环境的靶向疗法有望改善治疗效果。关注儿童患者肿瘤免疫生物学的各个方面，为改善治疗结果提供了潜在的治疗机遇。本综述全面梳理了近期关于多种儿童肿瘤免疫微环境特征分析的相关文献，旨在总结儿童肿瘤免疫微环境特征及其对肿瘤发展、转移和治疗反应影响的研究发现。内容涵盖免疫微环境在肿瘤发展中的作用、与肿瘤细胞的相互作用，以及其对肿瘤免疫治疗反应的影响。同时，本文也讨论了以免疫微环境为靶点进行儿童癌症治疗所面临的挑战。
Immune Microenvironment in Childhood Cancers: Characteristics and Therapeutic Challenges
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家