Metabolic influence on the differentiation of suppressive myeloid cells in cancer.

New evidences indicate that the metabolic instruction of immunity (immune metabolism) results from the integration of cell metabolism and whole body metabolism, that are both influenced by nutrition, microbioma metabolites and disease-driven metabolism (e.g. cancer metabolism). Cancer metabolism influences the immunological homeostasis and promotes immune alterations that support disease progression, hence influencing the clinical outcome. Cancer cells display increased glucose uptake and fermentation of glucose to lactate, even in the presence of completely functioning mitochondria. A major side effect of this event is immunosuppression, characterized by limited immunogenicity of cancer cells and restriction of the therapeutic efficacy of anticancer immunotherapy. Here we discuss how the metabolism of myeloid cells associated with cancer contributes to the differentiation of their suppressive phenotype and therefore to cancer immune evasion.