Immunotherapy given before or after surgery is increasingly used across several cancer areas. In an article published in the Journal of Internal Medicine, researchers at Karolinska Institutet present a comprehensive review of studies across seven tumor areas, showing how the field is moving toward earlier treatment.

For several years, immunotherapy has transformed the treatment of advanced cancer that can no longer be removed surgically. It is now used more frequently in earlier stages of disease as well—before surgery, known as neoadjuvant treatment, or after surgery, known as adjuvant treatment.

In the new article, the researchers summarize findings from studies on several cancer diagnoses, grouped into seven tumor areas: skin cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, gynecological cancer, head and neck cancer, and urological cancer.