From standard therapies to monoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors - an update for reconstructive surgeons on common oncological cases

Sep 21, 2026

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Malignancies remain a major global health burden, and tumor management typically combines surgical and non-surgical strategies. Over the past decade, monoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors have been incorporated into standard treatment algorithms, showing improved complete remission rates and longer progression-free survival versus conventional chemotherapy. Despite this, surgical resection followed by reconstruction often remains the only curative option for many tumor types. This review summarizes translational efforts on these therapies to support evidence-based targeted treatment planning.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

1 Introduction

Cancer burden and evolving therapy standards

Role of monoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors

Relevance for reconstructive surgery in oncology

TYPE Review PUBLISHED 23 April 2024 DOI 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1276306 OPEN ACCESS EDITED BY Jan A. Plock, Aarau Cantonal Hospital, Switzerland REVIEWED BY Soﬁja Pejkova, University Clinic for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, North Macedonia Tito Brambullo, University of Padua, Italy *CORRESPONDENCE Martin Kauke-Navarro [kauke-navarro.martin@yale.edu](kauke-navarro.martin@yale.edu)[ ](kauke-navarro.martin@yale.edu)Leonard Knoedler [leonardknoedler@gmail.com](leonardknoedler@gmail.com) RECEIVED 11 August 2023 ACCEPTED 05 April 2024 PUBLISHED 23 April 2024 CITATION Knoedler L, Huelsboemer L, Hollmann K, Alfertshofer M, Herfeld K, Hosseini H, Boroumand S, Stoegner VA, Saﬁ A-F, Perl M, Knoedler S, Pomahac B and Kauke-Navarro M (2024) From standard therapies tomonoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors – an update for reconstructive surgeons on common oncological cases. Front. Immunol. 15:1276306 . doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1276306 COPYRIGHT © 2024 Knoedler, Huelsboemer, Hollmann, Alfertshofer, Herfeld, Hosseini, Boroumand, Stoegner, Saﬁ, Perl, Knoedler, Pomahac and Kauke-Navarro. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. From standard therapies tomonoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors – an update for reconstructive surgeons on common oncological cases Leonard Knoedler 1,2*, Lioba Huelsboemer 2, Katharina Hollmann 3,4, Michael Alfertshofer 5, Konstantin Herfeld 6,7, Helia Hosseini 2, Sam Boroumand 2, Viola A. Stoegner 2,8, Ali-Farid Saﬁ9,10, Markus Perl 6,7, Samuel Knoedler 1,2, Bohdan Pomahac 2 and Martin Kauke-Navarro 2* 1 Department of Plastic, Hand, and Reconstructive Surgery, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, 2 Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Yale New Haven Hospital, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United States, 3 Department of Pathology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States, 4 Faculty of Medicine, University of Wuerzbuerg, Wuerzburg, Germany, 5 Division of Hand, Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery, LudwigMaximilians University Munich, Munich, Germany, 6 Department of Internal Medicine III (Oncology and Haematology), University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, 7 Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Regensburg, Germany, 8 Department of Plastic, Aesthetic, Hand and Reconstructive Surgery, Burn Center, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany, 9Craniologicum, Center for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery, Bern, Switzerland, 10 Faculty of Medicine, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland Malignancies represent a persisting worldwide health burden. Tumor treatment is commonly based on surgical and/or non-surgical therapies. In the recent decade, novel non-surgical treatment strategies involving monoclonal antibodies (mAB) and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have been successfully incorporated into standard treatment algorithms. Such emerging therapy concepts have demonstrated improved complete remission rates and prolonged progression-free survival compared to conventional chemotherapies. However, the in-toto surgical tumor resection followed by reconstructive surgery oftentimes remains the only curative therapy. Breast cancer (BC), skin cancer (SC), head and neck cancer (HNC), and sarcoma amongst other cancer entities commonly require reconstructive surgery to restore form, aesthetics, and functionality. Understanding the basic principles, strengths, and limitations of mAB and ICI as (neo-) adjuvant therapies and treatment alternatives forresectable or unre

FAQs

Why are monoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors important in current cancer care?

They have been successfully integrated into standard treatment algorithms and have shown improved complete remission rates and prolonged progression-free survival compared with conventional chemotherapies.

What role does reconstructive surgery play for common oncological cases?

For many entities such as breast cancer, skin cancer, head and neck cancer, and sarcoma, reconstructive surgery is commonly required to restore form, aesthetics, and functionality after tumor treatment.

What is the purpose of this review?

It aims to summarize current translational endeavors focusing on monoclonal antibodies and immune checkpoint inhibitors, addressing a literature gap for specific cancer types and guiding optimized interdisciplinary anticancer strategies.

Sep 21, 2026

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