Recent advances in targeting autophagy in cancer.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review of preclinical mechanisms and early clinical trials with no systematic synthesis.
PubMed 36931971 · doi:10.1016/j.tips.2023.02.003
What was done
This narrative review summarizes preclinical evidence on how tumor and host cell autophagy supports advanced tumor growth and survival. It surveys molecular mechanisms within the autophagy pathway, clinical experiences from first-generation lysosomal inhibition trials using hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), and novel, more selective autophagy inhibitors entering clinical trials in combination with chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative metrics or numerical findings. It notes qualitatively that preclinical research demonstrates dual tumor-cell and host-cell autophagy support for tumor progression, that first-generation clinical trials targeting autophagy with hydroxychloroquine yielded mixed results, and that novel inhibitors are being transitioned into clinical evaluation to improve therapeutic synergy.
Why it matters
Targeting autophagy represents a promising adjunctive strategy to overcome therapeutic resistance across multiple oncology modalities. Moving beyond non-specific agents like hydroxychloroquine to potent, targeted pathway inhibitors may clarify whether autophagy modulation produces reliable clinical efficacy.
Limits
As a narrative review, it lacks systematic search criteria, quality appraisal, and meta-analytic pooling. The abstract provides no specific patient numbers, clinical outcome statistics, or effect sizes, and relies heavily on preclinical mechanistic models.
Cited by
- supports Clinical trials testing chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine combined with chemotherapy or radiotherapy to treat cancer have not produced convincing results.