Natural killer cell inflammatory circuits in antitumor immunity.

NK cells are positioned as key initiators of inflammatory programs for effective tumor immunity, coordinating early NK–DC cross-talk that enables downstream T cell activation.

• Why it matters: Effective antitumor immunity depends on early inflammatory signaling, but established tumors often disrupt NK–DC communication through metabolic stress and immunosuppressive pathways, promoting immune evasion.
• What they did: This review synthesizes advances on NK cell–DC cross-talk, cytokine-driven amplification loops, and metabolic control of NK cell fitness, proposing integrated “immune circuits” as a therapeutic framework.
• The result: Restoring these integrated immune circuits may convert immune-excluded tumors into immunotherapy-responsive states, supporting strategies that target NK–DC communication and NK cell fitness.

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