Radiofrequency ablation in cancer therapy: Tuning in to in situ tumor vaccines

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a minimally invasive therapy for the local destruction of primary tumors and unresectable metastases, primarily in the liver. The clinical efficacy of RFA is mainly determined by the destruction of tumor mass. However, after ablation tumor antigens become instantly available for leucocytes, and the ablation procedure creates an inflammatory environment that may contribute to stimulate innate and adaptive anti-tumor immunity. Unfortunately, immune responses induced by RFA are only occasionally strong enough to lead to spontaneous regression of tumors. Combination of tumor debulking by RFA with immune stimulatory approaches that increase antigen presentation and induction of anti-tumor T cell reactivity is a promising strategy to prevent local recurrences and to induce long-term systemic protection against residual disease.