The review highlights perioperative immunotherapy as a shared approach across cancers, examining both before and after surgery and the potential for combinations that span pre- and post-surgery periods.

Some cancers may benefit from both neoadjuvant and adjuvant immunotherapy, though results differ by cancer type.

Overall, immunotherapy is being introduced earlier in treatment, showing potential benefits across multiple cancer types.

A Karolinska Institutet-led, multi-institutional review surveys perioperative immunotherapy across seven cancer categories to understand how early immunotherapy is reshaping cancer care and to share lessons across specialties.

The Journal of Internal Medicine paper synthesizes data from skin, lung, breast, gastrointestinal, gynecological, head and neck, and urological cancers to map evolving strategies with neoadjuvant and adjuvant immunotherapy.

Challenges noted include treatment side effects, the risk of overtreatment if surgery alone could suffice, and balancing costs and healthcare resource use.

There is a strong push for identifying which patients will benefit across tumor types and for clarifying the best perioperative approaches through further studies.

Results vary by cancer type, with challenges including potential side effects, overtreatment risk, and uncertainty about costs and resource demands in earlier-stage application.

Adjuvant immunotherapy can reduce recurrence risk after surgery, and neoadjuvant immunotherapy may boost immune recognition while the tumor is intact, with some cases benefiting from combining both approaches.

The accompanying publication discloses funding sources and potential conflicts of interest.

A key aim is to develop biomarkers that predict which patients will benefit, with calls for more research on optimal use, safety, and cost considerations.

Additionally, researchers emphasize considering costs, side effects, and resource implications when applying immunotherapy earlier in disease stages.