Tumors must circumvent the immune response of the host to
become clinically detectable. For this purpose, malignant cells
have devised multiple strategies to thwart immune attack. These
mechanisms are suggested to conspire in advanced stages of cancer to limit the ability of the immune system to restrain the tumor
and the effectiveness of immunotherapy strategies to successfully
eradicate malignant cells. From tumor biology to cancer immunotherapy and back again, we will summarize here some of the
most important mechanisms used by tumors to evade the immune response and their potential impact in the design of cancer
immunotherapy strategies.