Harnessing the power of microbiome, nanotechnology, and immunity against cancer

The human microbiome has emerged as a key player in health and disease, including cancer, which remains one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide. Although advances in understanding the tumor immune microenvironment and the development of immunotherapies have transformed cancer treatment, clinical efficacy remains limited by suboptimal response rates and severe side effects. Recent integrative research in cancer biology, immune-oncology, and cancer microbiome research, enabled by omics technologies and advanced bioinformatics, has begun to reveal intricate links between the microbiome, cancer progression, and immune modulation. These findings underscore the microbiome's pivotal role in shaping both therapeutic efficacy and resistance mechanisms. Currently, nanotechnology, propelled into mainstream success through the development of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, is offering new tools for precision oncology. Nanomaterials are now being explored not only for targeted drug delivery but also for monitoring and modulating the microbiome, with significant potential for biomarker discovery and personalized medicine. In this article, we explore the role of the microbiota in tumorigenesis and cancer therapy, with a particular focus on its crosstalk with the immune system. We highlight emerging microbiota-targeted therapeutic strategies and discuss how nanotechnology-based systems are being designed to modulate the microbiome-immune-cancer axis. Finally, we discuss future directions in leveraging the convergence of microbiome science, nanotechnology, and immunotherapy to advance cancer treatment.