Tislelizumab: A Modified Anti-tumor Programmed Death Receptor 1 Antibody

Tislelizumab is an anti-programmed death receptor 1 (PD-1) monoclonal immunoglobulin G 4 antibody developed by BeiGene. The structure of tislelizumab has been modified to maximally inhibit the binding of PD-1 to programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) and minimize the binding of tislelizumab to Fcγ receptors. In clinical studies, tislelizumab has shown preliminary anti-tumor effects in various solid tumors, such as Hodgkin’s lymphoma, urothelial carcinoma, lung cancer, gastric and esophageal cancer, liver cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, colorectal cancer, and microsatellite instability-high/mismatch repair-deficient tumors. In addition, it also showed new promise in solid tumor treatment in combination with ociperlimab. Due to its satisfactory anti-tumor effects, tislelizumab has received approvals in China for the treatment of classical Hodgkin’s lymphoma, urothelial carcinoma, squamous non-small cell lung cancer, non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer, and hepatocellular carcinoma, and it is now under investigation for a new indication in microsatellite instability-high/mismatch repair-deficient tumors. Moreover, it has been granted orphan designations in hepatocellular carcinoma, esophageal cancer, and gastric cancer, including cancer of the gastroesophageal junction, by the US Food and Drug Administration. Tislelizumab has an acceptable safety profile; the most common adverse effects include fatigue, anemia, and decreased neutrophil count, while the most fatal events have been related to respiratory infection or failure, and hepatic injury. Tislelizumab has an economic advantage compared with other well-studied PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors; thus, the introduction of it could provide clinical oncologists with an effective weapon against tumors and may alleviate the burden of cancer patients.