Figure 1.

Synergy between radiation therapy and immune therapy in NSCLC. Radiation therapy (top left) releases and alters antigen as targeted tissue dies, influencing immunogenicity in ways we are only beginning to understand. Cellular contents activate the innate immune system, represented here by a dendritic cell (DC), which then leads to an antitumoral response by the adaptive immune system. Immunotherapeutic agents such as cytokines and vaccines (pictured top right), augment immune activation by acting on antigen presenting cells or T cells. Checkpoint inhibitors maintain T-cell activation by blocking inhibitory signaling pathways. Activated T-cells act to improve both systemic and local control. NSCLC, non-small cell lung cancer.