Article highlights & insights
The mechanisms by which melanoma and other cancer cells evade anti-tumor immunity remain incompletely understood. This study shows that the growth of tumours formed by mutant BrafV600E mouse melanoma cells in an immunocompetent host requires their production of PGE2, which suppresses immunity and fuels tumour-promoting inflammation. Genetic ablation of cyclooxygenases (COX) or prostaglandin E synthases in BrafV600E mouse melanoma cells, as well as in NrasG12D melanoma or in breast or colorectal cancer cells, renders them susceptible to immune control and provokes a shift in the tumour inflammatory profile toward classic anti-cancer immune pathways.
Furthermore, proof-of-concept pre-clinical data demonstrate that inhibition of COX synergises with anti-PD-1 blockade in inducing tumour eradication, implying that COX inhibitors could be useful adjuvants for immune-based therapies in cancer patients.
The mechanisms by which melanoma and other cancer cells evade anti-tumor immunity remain incompletely understood. This study shows that the growth of tumours formed by mutant BrafV600E mouse melanoma cells in an immunocompetent host requires their production of PGE2, which suppresses immunity and fuels tumour-promoting inflammation. Genetic ablation of cyclooxygenases (COX) or prostaglandin E synthases in BrafV600E mouse melanoma cells, as well as in NrasG12D melanoma or in breast or colorectal cancer cells, renders them susceptible to immune control and provokes a shift in the tumour inflammatory profile toward classic anti-cancer immune pathways.
Furthermore, proof-of-concept pre-clinical data demonstrate that inhibition of COX synergises with anti-PD-1 blockade in inducing tumour eradication, implying that COX inhibitors could be useful adjuvants for immune-based therapies in cancer patients.
Institute Authors
Group leader
Research topics & keywords
Meet the Research Team
Senior Group Leader
Senior Scientific Officer
Postdoctoral Scientist
Postdoctoral Scientist
Postdoctoral Scientist
Postdoctoral Scientist
Clinical Fellow
PhD Student
PhD Student
PhD Student
NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer
All publications
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(26)00522-2
Plasma signals of lung tumor promotion for molecular cancer prevention
25 June 2026
Institute Authors (1)
William Hill
Research Group
Cancer Origins
25 June 2026
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1038/s44319-026-00809-1
PKMYT1 has an important role in the timing and fidelity of chromosome segregation
5 June 2026
Institute Authors (5)
Asma Belbelazi, Charlie Greenaway-Wells, Zoe Edwards, Keren Dawson, Iain Hagan
Research Group
Cell Division
5 June 2026
https://www.nature.com/articles/s42255-026-01514-y
Tissue-specific fibroblast lipid cues impose the rate of epithelial cancer invasion
27 April 2026
Institute Authors (4)
Amaya Virós, Noah Palombo, Charlotte Russell, Claus Jørgensen
Research Group
Skin Cancer & Ageing
27 April 2026
https://www.cell.com/cancer-cell/fulltext/S1535-6108(26)00114-5
Immunometabolic gatekeeping: How tissue metabolism conditions tumor immunity
13 April 2026
Institute Authors (1)
Samra Turajlić
Research Group
Cancer Dynamics
13 April 2026
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-69964-2
Disruption of tRNA threonylation triggers RIG-I mediated anti-tumour immune response
25 February 2026
Institute Authors (1)
Sylvain Delaunay
Research Group
RNA Dynamics in Cancer
25 February 2026
https://doi.org/10.1038/s44161-025-00740-z
Single-cell profiling reveals three endothelial-to-hematopoietic transitions with divergent isoform expression landscapes
11 November 2025
Institute Authors (6)
Robert Sellers, John Weightman, Wolfgang Breitwieser, Natalia Moncaut, Michael Lie-a-ling, Georges Lacaud
Labs & Facilities
Computational Biology Support, Molecular Biology, Genome Editing and Mouse Models
Research Group
Stem Cell Biology
11 November 2025
Our Research
Our research spans the whole spectrum of cancer research from cell biology through to translational and clinical studies
Research Groups
Our research groups study many fundamental questions of cancer biology and treatment
Our Facilities
The Institute has outstanding core facilities that offer cutting edge instruments and tailored services from expert staff
Latest News & Updates
Find out all our latest news
Careers that have a lasting impact on cancer research and patient care
We are always on the lookout for talented and motivated people to join us. Whether your background is in biological or chemical sciences, mathematics or finance, computer science or logistics, use the links below to see roles across the Institute in our core facilities, operations teams, research groups, and studentships within our exceptional graduate programme.
Institute life in Manchester
We strive to make our community a welcoming, caring and enthusiastic one, fuelling ambition with opportunities for training and mentoring to help us all achieve our personal and professional goals.
“We are so pleased to have received the funding to enable us to test our hypothesis in the lab. If we can create a new medicine that can precisely target a specific type of cell within the tumour, and restore anti-cancer immune responses, this will be a game-changer for oesophageal cancer patients “
Sara Valpione
Former Institute Clinical Fellow and now Clinician in Residence within the CRUK National Biomarker Centre
“My charity bake sales – known as “David’s Great British Bake Off” – are always a hit, home baked products taste so much better than shop bought and are greatly appreciated by staff!”
David Jenkins
Purchasing Officer
“We’ve seen some remarkable responses, with an improvement for some patients within days. This is an early phase trial so there’s a lot more work to do. But the data we have so far is very encouraging and could help many thousands of people in the future”
Tim Somervaille
Senior Group Leader
“It is a pleasure to introduce my team who work to deliver our research goals. We work in a friendly and collaborative environment, supporting each other’s projects. “
Amaya Virós
CRUK Advanced Clinician Scientist Fellow
“We are so pleased to have received the funding to enable us to test our hypothesis in the lab. If we can create a new medicine that can precisely target a specific type of cell within the tumour, and restore anti-cancer immune responses, this will be a game-changer for oesophageal cancer patients “
Sara Valpione
Former Institute Clinical Fellow and now Clinician in Residence within the CRUK National Biomarker Centre
“My charity bake sales – known as “David’s Great British Bake Off” – are always a hit, home baked products taste so much better than shop bought and are greatly appreciated by staff!”
David Jenkins
Purchasing Officer
“We’ve seen some remarkable responses, with an improvement for some patients within days. This is an early phase trial so there’s a lot more work to do. But the data we have so far is very encouraging and could help many thousands of people in the future”
Tim Somervaille
Senior Group Leader
“It is a pleasure to introduce my team who work to deliver our research goals. We work in a friendly and collaborative environment, supporting each other’s projects. “
Amaya Virós
CRUK Advanced Clinician Scientist Fellow