Modern strategies for using interleukin 2 in the treatment of cancer: a review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Interleukin-2 (IL-2) is one of the key cytokines with pleiotropic effects on the immune system. IL-2 has been approved for the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma and metastatic melanoma. Recent advances in understanding the role of IL-2 in the regulation of antitumor immunity have opened new promising avenues in cancer immunotherapy. Aim. To analyze current strategies and limitations of IL-2 use in immunotherapy of malignant tumors. Literature search: the literature search was conducted in the Web of Science and PubMed databases (2015–2025). The analysis showed that IL-2-based drugs are still used both as monotherapy and in combination with other antitumor treatments, such as adoptive immunotherapy with activated and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, immune checkpoint inhibitors, as well as chemotherapy and targeted agents. These findings indicate that combining IL-2 with targeted inhibitors may enhance their efficacy. Combinations of high-dose IL-2 immunotherapy with other agents, including immune checkpoint inhibitors and adoptive cell immunotherapy, require randomized clinical trials to determine the optimal sequential or combined regimen.