This paper explores the evolving understanding of chemotherapy's role in cancer treatment, highlighting its capacity to do more than directly kill cancer cells. It details how conventional chemotherapies, initially chosen for their ability to inhibit cell proliferation, are now recognized for their immunostimulatory effects. The text explains these effects through "on-target" mechanisms that make cancer cells more visible to the immune system and "off-target" effects that influence immune cell populations and overall body physiology. Crucially, the source emphasizes the synergistic potential of combining immunogenic chemotherapies with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), a strategy increasingly explored in clinical trials to enhance long-term anti-cancer immunity. It also acknowledges the challenges and future directions in optimizing these combination therapies, including identifying ideal dosing, sequencing, and predictive biomarkers for improved patient outcomes.
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