Stem cell like memory T cells: A new paradigm in cancer immunotherapy.

Stem cell like memory T (T) cells have emerged as the apex of memory T cell differentiation for their properties of self-renewal and replenishing progenies. With potent long-term persistence, proliferative capacity and antitumor activity, T cells were thought to be the ideal candidate for cancer immunotherapies. Several strategies have been proposed, such as manipulations of cytokines, metabolic factors, signal pathways, and T cell receptor signal intensity, to induce more T cells in vitro, in the hope that they could reach a clinical order of magnitude to provide more long-lasting and effective anti-tumor effects in vivo. In this review, we summarized the differentiation characteristics of T cells and strategies to generate more T cells. We focused on their roles and application in the cancer immunotherapy especially in adoptive cell transfer therapy and cancer therapeutic vaccines, and hopefully provided clues for future understanding and researches.