Tumors can evade immune surveillance by employing different escape mechanisms. Several immunotherapies can block relevant elements in these escape mechanisms and enable an immune response attacking tumor cells. This therapeutic strategy has proven to be effective in multiple tumor entities, however not in pancreatic cancer. A detailed understanding of the complex immunological  processes in pancreatic cancer is therefore urgently needed. The metabolic requirements of tumor and immune cells have a critical influence on the response to immunotherapy. The research project led by PD Dr. Lena Seifert aims to decipher relevant interactions between immunological escape mechanisms and metabolic requirements in pancreatic cancer with, ultimately, the development of innovative therapeutic strategies.

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