LETTER FROM THE EDITOR - MAY

 

Hello JITC Readers,

Dear JITC Readers,

Welcome to the latest edition of the JITC Digest. As the busy meeting season continues, I know many of us are excited to check out the latest research that will be unveiled at next month’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago. For those of you attending in person, please stop by the SITC Booth (#2026) in the exhibition hall, where I will be holding a Meet the Editor activity on Sunday, June 4th, 11–11:30 am CT. It’s a great opportunity to talk about your work and explore opportunities within JITC.

Whether or not you’re attending the meeting, you can follow along with JITC’s social media coverage of ASCO 2023 on Twitter and LinkedIn. Our journal’s social media presence continues to expand, thanks in no small part to our dedicated Social Media Editors Drs. Kristin Anderson, Praveen Bommareddy, and Cheng Sun. Learn more about each of them in the special feature below.

You can also check out this month’s Editor’s Picks, which highlight efforts from around the world and across the research spectrum, including the generation and preclinical characterization of a novel SIRPα blocking antibody, BYON4228, by van Helden et al, and how radiation treatment shapes the immune compartment and interactions with cancer cells within renal cell carcinoma patient tumors from Chow et al.

Regards,

James L. Gulley, MD, PhD, FACP

Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer Interim Editor-in-Chief

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR - APRIL

 

Hello JITC Readers,

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the latest edition of the JITC Digest. While I am honored to step into the role of Interim Editor-in-Chief, I must first send my sincerest thanks and appreciation to Founding Editor-in-Chief Pedro J. Romero for his guidance and dedication during his decade plus leading the journal. I encourage you all to view the special feature below, a thank you to Dr. Romero on behalf of JITC‘s Editorial Board and staff.

As JITC now opens a new chapter and enters its second decade, I am pleased to welcome Sjoerd van der Burg as Interim Deputy Editor-in-Chief. I look forward to working closely with him as we carry on the high quality and stellar reputation of the journal into a bright future. 

Change may be in the air at JITC, but unchanged is the commitment to continue publishing the best the immunotherapy field has to offer. Be sure to check out some of the top recent publications featured here in the Editor’s Picks. From identifying a population of CD163-expressing M2-like macrophages as key suppressors of T cell immunity with Marit J. van Elsas et al to a phase I, first-in-human trial that provides proof of principle that vaccination combined with checkpoint blockade may elicit antitumor T cell responses against prostate cancer by Karen A. Autio et al, there is something for everyone.

Finally, I would also like to thank the many of you who stopped by the SITC booth for the Meet the Editor activity during AACR 2023. It is always wonderful to see so many colleagues and discuss the latest science. If you couldn’t make it, join me at ASCO 2023 on Sunday, June 4^th. I will be available for a Meet the Editor activity at 11am CT at the SITC booth (#2016). I hope to see you there!

Regards,

James L. Gulley, MD, PhD, FACP

Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer Interim Editor-in-Chief

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR - MARCH

 

Hello JITC Readers,

For more than 10 years, I have had the honor and the pleasure of being at the helm of the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer (JITC). It has been an absolutely extraordinary experience. Many of you know that I have transitioned already to Professor Emeritus at University of Lausanne. As I contemplate the next phase of my career, the time has come for me to pass the baton on to another to lead JITC so that they may experience all the inspiration and community that the journal has to offer. 

Being the Founding Editor-in-Chief of JITC has been one of the most exciting and rewarding tasks in my academic career. The effort to build JITC, shared with several successive leaders at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) as well as publishers BMC (2013–2019) and BMJ (2020–present), has made it all the more special. 

I would like to express my appreciation to the team of nearly 100 editors, especially to Section Editors—Kees Melief, Sjoerd van der Burg, Douglas McNeel, Claudia Palena, Jeff Weber, Ignacio Melero, Alexandra Snyder, Howard Kaufman, Sebastian Kobold, Marcela Maus, Robert Ferris, Sandra Demaria, Laurence Fong, and Christian Capitini—former Section Editors, and Specialty Editors. I also thank the multiple teams at SITC that support the journal in various, critical ways. Most especially, I express my deepest gratitude to our Managing Editor, Andrea Kunz, and Assistant Managing Editor, Matthew Erickson, who are the tireless brains and hands keeping JITC thriving and vibrant. There simply is not enough space here to name all of the society’s and scientific community’s members who have generously accompanied us in this successful publishing adventure.

As I transition into a new role with the journal as a Consulting Editor for Special Series and Reviews, I am pleased to share that our current JITC Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Dr. James Gulley, is stepping into the role of Interim Editor-in-Chief starting in April while SITC conducts an open search for the next Editor-in-Chief later this year. Having worked with him on the journal over the past several years, I am grateful to see his leadership recognized and know he will carry the role of Interim Editor-in-Chief with pride. I also congratulate our dedicated Section Editor, Sjoerd van der Burg, who will be promoted to Interim Deputy Editor-in-Chief during this transition period. I wish James, Sjoerd, the editorial team, and all the JITC family continued success. With them in the pilot’s cockpit, the journal enters into its second decade of its life as the vehicle to accelerate the discovery and implementation of new treatments for cancers based on the immune system.

Regards,

Pedro J. Romero, MD
Editor-in-Chief, Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer

 

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR - FEBRUARY

Hello JITC Readers,

Welcome to the latest edition of the JITC Digest. This month I’m excited to share our special feature, spotlighting JITC’s newest review series, “Liquid Biopsies Coming of Age: Biology, Emerging Technologies, and Clinical Translation.” Our first two reviews and their companion viewpoint letters have already published, and be sure to check the collections page throughout 2023 for additional articles on this exciting and emerging frontier.

Our article highlights this month feature other exciting frontiers for the immunotherapy field including epigenetic modulation and microbial influences on anti-tumor immunity.

Lauren M Perry and colleagues describe the presence of an intratumoral microbiome and virome in soft tissue sarcoma as well as associations between intratumoral viruses, natural killer cell infiltration, and oncologic outcomes.

Rationale for combination of epigenetic modulation with macrophage-targeting therapies for the treatment of MYC-driven medulloblastoma is provided by Viktoria Marquardt and colleagues.

Two pathways for T cell-induced secretion of the TIM-3 and VISTA ligand galectin-9 from solid tumors are revealed by Stephanie Schlichtner et al.

And finally, Jelmer H van Puffelen and colleagues show that intravesical Bacillus Calmette–Guérin causes epigenetic, transcriptomic, and functional changes in myeloid cells consistent with trained immunity, which may protect patients undergoing treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer from respiratory infections.

Best,

Pedro J. Romero, MD
Editor-in-Chief, Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer

 

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR - JANUARY

Hello JITC Readers,

Happy New Year and welcome to the first JITC Digest of 2023. We’re looking forward to the year ahead, and we’re excited for everything 2023 has in store for the journal. Be sure to check our special feature each month for the latest news. This month we’re extending a sincere and heartfelt thank you to the numerous volunteer reviewers who gave their time and expertise last year. 

Our article highlight this month is evenly split between papers related to engineered T cell products for hematologic malignancies and checkpoint blockade for solid tumors. The research spans from preclinical characterization to long-term follow-up data from a pivotal phase III trial. 

Katharina Baur and colleagues offer an intriguing case report on dasatinib for the management of CAR T cell therapy-associated toxicities. Anaïs Jiménez-Reinoso et al describe preclinical control of T cell leukemia with T cells engineered to secrete a bispecific antibody. 

5-year follow-up data from Brian I Rini et al continue to demonstrate clinical benefit with ipilimumab in combination with nivolumab for the treatment of sarcomatoid renal cell carcinoma. Min Zheng offers analysis supporting a significant association between pre-treatment serum albumin levels and clinical benefit with checkpoint blockade across a variety of solid tumors. 

With best wishes for 2023,

Pedro J. Romero, MD
Editor-in-Chief, Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer