This paper provides an extensive review of Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapy specifically focusing on its application and challenges in treating solid tumors, contrasting its limited success here with its proven efficacy in hematologic malignancies. It identifies major obstacles, such as antigenic heterogeneity and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), which hinder CAR-T cell performance in solid tumors. The text details various emerging strategies being explored to enhance CAR-T cell function, including genetic engineering to improve T cell persistence and cytotoxicity, modifications to CAR structures, and combination therapies like those with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Furthermore, the review summarizes current clinical trial outcomes for CAR-T therapy across several types of solid tumors, such as lung, gastric, and prostate cancers, while discussing innovations in CAR-T cell manufacturing, including non-viral gene editing and allogeneic approaches.

References:

• Du B, Qin J, Lin B, et al. CAR-T therapy in solid tumors[J]. Cancer Cell, 2025, 43(4): 665-679.