UC San Diego

Loss or silencing of tumor suppressors (TSs) promotes neoplastic transformation and malignant progression. To date, most work on TS has focused on their cell autonomous effects. Recent evidence, however, demonstrates an important noncell autonomous role for TS in the control of tumor-associated inflammation. We review evidence from clinical data sets and mouse model studies demonstrating enhanced inflammation and altered tumor microenvironment (TME) upon TS inactivation. We discuss clinical correlations between tumor-associated inflammation and inactivation of TS, and their therapeutic implications. This review sets forth the concept that TS can also suppress tumor-associated inflammation, a concept that provides new insights into tumor-host interactions. We also propose that in some cases the loss of TS function in cancer can be overcome through inhibition of the resulting inflammatory response, regardless whether it is a direct or an indirect consequence of TS loss.