Phage therapy in cancer prevention and treatment.

Beyond antibacterial functions, bacteriophages (or phages) can modulate tumor-associated microbiota, alter immune responses, and influence cancer progression.

Advances in synthetic biology enable programmable phages to target tumor cells, deliver therapeutic cargos, and enhance antitumor immunity with high specificity and minimal toxicity.

Phage-mediated modulation of the microbiome offers a novel strategy to disrupt cancer-promoting bacterial networks and improve responses to immunotherapy or chemotherapy.

Despite promising preclinical evidence, challenges including immune clearance, host specificity, pharmacokinetics, and regulatory frameworks must be addressed before clinical implementation.

Combining phage-based interventions with conventional and immune-based therapies could open a new frontier in precision cancer prevention and treatment. sciencenewshighlights ScienceMission https://sciencemission.com/Phage-therapy-in-oncology

Bacteriophages (phages) are emerging as programmable biological therapeutics in oncology, extending beyond their traditional antimicrobial applications. This review proposes a phage–microbiome–immune–oncology axis that links microbial dynamics, immune modulation, and engineered phages to guide precision cancer prevention and therapy. Phages can eliminate cancer-associated bacteria, remodel the tumor microenvironment, enhance antitumor immunity, and deliver targeted therapeutic payloads. However, several critical challenges must be addressed to realize this therapeutic potential, particularly host immune responses that limit repeat dosing, inefficient tumor penetration, and the need for rigorous clinical validation.