Although immunotherapy has merged as an ideal cancer therapeutic strategy for preventing tumor growth and recurrence, effective approaches to treat immunologically cold tumors are still lacking. Herein, we reported a practical and extendable nanoplatform (HA/ZIF-8@ICG@IMQ) that facilely integrated various therapeutics and functions for boosting host antitumor immunity to treat immunologically cold tumors. The tumor-targeted and microenvironment-responsive HA/ZIF-8@ICG@IMQ facilitated the tumor-specific accumulation and release of photothermal agents and immune adjuvants. With near-infrared irradiation, the designed nanoparticles effectively enhanced the infiltration of cytotoxic T lymphocytes and helper T cells and effectively blocked the growth of primary and distant tumors. Moreover, the smart therapeutic could effectively prevent tumor rechallenge and recurrence with a long-term host immunological memory response. This method shows an effective immunologically cold tumor treatment using extendable nanotherapeutics and may have reference significance for clinical cancer therapy.
Keywords: colorectal cancer; drug delivery; immunotherapy; nanomedicine; phototherapy.