Practice questions:
Advanced Tumor Immunology Concepts
1. How do tumors leverage the immunosuppressive functions of regulatory T-cells (T-reg) and
myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) to evade immune surveillance, and what are the
molecular mechanisms involved?
2. Describe the process of cross-dressing in dendritic cells (DCs) and explain its implications in
tumor immunology.
3. Explain the mechanisms by which tumors reduce MHC-I expression and the role of NK cells in
compensating for this immune evasion strategy.
Tumor Evasion and Immune Editing
4. How does the concept of immune editing explain the transition from tumor elimination to
equilibrium and eventually to immune escape? Provide examples of immune evasion
mechanisms that tumors develop over time.
5. Discuss the role of co-stimulatory and inhibitory signals in T-cell activation and how tumors
exploit these pathways to induce T-cell anergy.
6. How do tumors manipulate macrophages to favor an immunosuppressive (M2) phenotype,
and what are the consequences of this shift for tumor progression?
Immunotherapy and Tumor Vaccines
7. What is the rationale behind using checkpoint inhibitors like anti-PD-1 and anti-CTLA-4 in
combination, and what are the limitations of this approach?
8. Explain the concept of autologous dendritic cell (DC) vaccination in cancer therapy, including
the key challenges associated with this approach.
9. In CAR-T cell therapy, what are the advantages and challenges of targeting solid tumors
compared to hematological malignancies?
Advanced Tumor Antigen Recognition
10. Differentiate between tumor-specific antigens (TSAs) and tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in
the context of cancer immunotherapy. Why are TSAs considered more ideal targets?
11. Describe the role of neoantigens in the success of immune checkpoint blockade therapies.
12. How does cross-presentation by dendritic cells contribute to the activation of cytotoxic T-
lymphocytes (CTLs) in the tumor microenvironment?
Glycosylation and Tumor Immunology
13. What is the role of aberrant glycosylation in tumor immune evasion, and how do lectins such
as Siglecs contribute to this process?
14. How can targeting tumor-associated glycan structures be used as a therapeutic strategy in
cancer immunotherapy?
Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs)
15. Explain the transcriptional regulation of MDSCs in the tumor microenvironment and how it
leads to immune suppression.
16. How do MDSCs contribute to tumor metastasis, and what are the mechanisms involved in
this process?
, Virotherapy and Oncolytic Viruses
17. What mechanisms allow oncolytic viruses to selectively replicate in tumor cells, and how
does this strategy enhance anti-tumor immunity?
18. How can combining oncolytic virotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors enhance
therapeutic outcomes in cancer patients?
Advanced Diagnostic Techniques
19. How does liquid biopsy compare to traditional tissue biopsy in terms of identifying prognostic
and predictive biomarkers for cancer?
20. Discuss the advantages and limitations of using single-cell RNA sequencing in tumor
immunology research.
Immune Modulation in Cancer Therapy
21. How does radiotherapy-induced immunogenic cell death enhance the efficacy of immune
checkpoint blockade?
22. Explain the STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) pathway and its role in the anti-tumor
immune response following DNA damage in cancer cells.
Advanced Immunotherapy Strategies
23. How does the tumor microenvironment influence the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy, and what
strategies are being developed to overcome these challenges?
24. What role does the gut microbiome play in modulating the response to cancer
immunotherapy, and how could microbiome manipulation be used as a therapeutic strategy?
25. How does the combination of bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs) and oncolytic viruses enhance
tumor cell targeting and destruction?
Advanced Tumor Immunology Concepts
1. How do tumors leverage the immunosuppressive functions of regulatory T-cells (T-reg) and
myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) to evade immune surveillance, and what are the
molecular mechanisms involved?
2. Describe the process of cross-dressing in dendritic cells (DCs) and explain its implications in
tumor immunology.
3. Explain the mechanisms by which tumors reduce MHC-I expression and the role of NK cells in
compensating for this immune evasion strategy.
Tumor Evasion and Immune Editing
4. How does the concept of immune editing explain the transition from tumor elimination to
equilibrium and eventually to immune escape? Provide examples of immune evasion
mechanisms that tumors develop over time.
5. Discuss the role of co-stimulatory and inhibitory signals in T-cell activation and how tumors
exploit these pathways to induce T-cell anergy.
6. How do tumors manipulate macrophages to favor an immunosuppressive (M2) phenotype,
and what are the consequences of this shift for tumor progression?
Immunotherapy and Tumor Vaccines
7. What is the rationale behind using checkpoint inhibitors like anti-PD-1 and anti-CTLA-4 in
combination, and what are the limitations of this approach?
8. Explain the concept of autologous dendritic cell (DC) vaccination in cancer therapy, including
the key challenges associated with this approach.
9. In CAR-T cell therapy, what are the advantages and challenges of targeting solid tumors
compared to hematological malignancies?
Advanced Tumor Antigen Recognition
10. Differentiate between tumor-specific antigens (TSAs) and tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in
the context of cancer immunotherapy. Why are TSAs considered more ideal targets?
11. Describe the role of neoantigens in the success of immune checkpoint blockade therapies.
12. How does cross-presentation by dendritic cells contribute to the activation of cytotoxic T-
lymphocytes (CTLs) in the tumor microenvironment?
Glycosylation and Tumor Immunology
13. What is the role of aberrant glycosylation in tumor immune evasion, and how do lectins such
as Siglecs contribute to this process?
14. How can targeting tumor-associated glycan structures be used as a therapeutic strategy in
cancer immunotherapy?
Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs)
15. Explain the transcriptional regulation of MDSCs in the tumor microenvironment and how it
leads to immune suppression.
16. How do MDSCs contribute to tumor metastasis, and what are the mechanisms involved in
this process?
, Virotherapy and Oncolytic Viruses
17. What mechanisms allow oncolytic viruses to selectively replicate in tumor cells, and how
does this strategy enhance anti-tumor immunity?
18. How can combining oncolytic virotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors enhance
therapeutic outcomes in cancer patients?
Advanced Diagnostic Techniques
19. How does liquid biopsy compare to traditional tissue biopsy in terms of identifying prognostic
and predictive biomarkers for cancer?
20. Discuss the advantages and limitations of using single-cell RNA sequencing in tumor
immunology research.
Immune Modulation in Cancer Therapy
21. How does radiotherapy-induced immunogenic cell death enhance the efficacy of immune
checkpoint blockade?
22. Explain the STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) pathway and its role in the anti-tumor
immune response following DNA damage in cancer cells.
Advanced Immunotherapy Strategies
23. How does the tumor microenvironment influence the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy, and what
strategies are being developed to overcome these challenges?
24. What role does the gut microbiome play in modulating the response to cancer
immunotherapy, and how could microbiome manipulation be used as a therapeutic strategy?
25. How does the combination of bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs) and oncolytic viruses enhance
tumor cell targeting and destruction?
