AUTHOR=Xia Anliang , Zhang Yan , Xu Jiang , Yin Tailang , Lu Xiao-Jie 

TITLE=T Cell Dysfunction in Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2019.01719

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2019.01719

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>In cancer, T cells become dysfunctional owing to persistent antigen exposure. Dysfunctional T cells are characterized by reduced proliferative capacity, decreased effector function, and overexpression of multiple inhibitory receptors. Due to the presence of various inhibitory signals in the complex tumor microenvironment, tumor-specific T cells have distinct dysfunction states. Therapeutic reactivation of tumor-specific T cells has yielded good results in cancer patients. Here, we review the hallmarks of T cell dysfunction in cancer. Also, we discuss the relationship between T cell dysfunction and cancer immunotherapy.</p>