Autoimmunity and Chronic Inflammation in Cancer: Mechanisms, Biomarkers, and Therapeutic Implications

Dysregulated immunity and chronic inflammation are key contributors to cancer development, progression, and therapy response. Persistent inflammatory signals drive tumorigenesis via genomic instability, angiogenesis, and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments. Meanwhile, autoimmune phenomena can reflect enhanced immune activation affecting antitumor immunity. These points underscore the complex link between chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, and tumor immunity. Advances in single-cell analysis, spatial transcriptomics, and high-dimensional immune profiling clarify how these pathways shape tumor–immune interactions and clinical outcomes. Ongoing research may help identify biomarkers and guide the development of new cancer therapies.Autoimmunity and chronic inflammation affect all stages of cancer, from initiation and progression to therapy response. Key questions remain about how autoimmune responses drive tumor-promoting or tumor-suppressive processes, which molecular mediators link inflammation to oncogenesis, and how chronic immune activation shapes the tumor microenvironment. A better understanding of these interactions may refine cancer diagnosis, risk assessment, and prognosis, and support the identification of inflammatory and immune biomarkers for treatment selection. Moreover, immune dysregulation driven by chronic inflammation and autoimmunity may lead to immune-related adverse events during cancer immunotherapy. Addressing these issues requires integration of basic, translational, and clinical research. Uniting research from immunology and oncology may clarify the roles of inflammatory and autoimmune processes in cancer and reveal strategies to improve patient care and outcomes.This Research Topic welcomes contributions that address the mechanistic, translational, and clinical aspects of autoimmunity and chronic inflammation in cancer. Submissions may focus on experimental models, clinical studies, biomarker discovery, or therapeutic strategies targeting immune dysregulation in oncology and tumor immunity.We welcome the submission of Original Research, Review, Mini Review, and Perspective articles on themes including, but not limited to:• Molecular and cellular mechanisms linking chronic inflammation to tumorigenesis• Interactions between autoimmune responses and the tumor microenvironment• Inflammatory and immune biomarkers associated with cancer progression or therapeutic response• Immune-related adverse events associated with cancer immunotherapy• Therapeutic strategies targeting inflammatory or autoimmune pathways in cancer• Translational and clinical studies investigating immune dysregulation in malignancyWe encourage submissions that integrate insights from immunology, tumor biology, and clinical oncology to advance understanding of immune-mediated mechanisms in cancer. Topic editors: Zorica Cvetkovic, Sonja Genadieva Stavrikj Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79821/autoimmunity-and-chronic-inflammation-in-cancer-mechanisms-biomarkers-and-therapeutic-implications