Abstract IA-002: Dendritic cell corner stone of tumor immunity in PDAC

T cell-directed immunotherapies have not been effective for the majority of pancreatic cancer patients, in part, due to our limited understanding of how T cell immunity is subverted in this disease. We sought to identify mechanisms for this failure using spontaneous mouse models. We report that endogenous antigen-specific responses in PDAC are aberrant due to a scarcity of dendritic cells, which favors the expansion of tumor-promoting TH17 immunity. Restoring cDCs in pancreatic cancer can enhance CD8+ T cell and TH1 activity to ultimately help control disease. These findings expand our understanding of T cell ineffectiveness in pancreatic cancer, and propose combinatorial strategies to modulate cDCs in conjunction with existing therapies for pancreatic cancer and similar solid malignancies. Citation Format: David G. DeNardo. Dendritic cell corner stone of tumor immunity in PDAC [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer; 2021 Sep 29-30. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(22 Suppl):Abstract nr IA-002.