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15 January 2026
Lysosomes as New Targets in Cancer Therapy: Beyond the Drug Itself
“Lysosomes can be readily targeted and manipulated, thus attenuating the autophagic flux and improving cancer treatment outcome.
Lysosome modulation emerges as a promising strategy to improve cancer treatment and immune response.
A new review paper, led by RTICC member Prof. Yehuda G. Assaraf from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, was published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences, and highlights lysosomes as an emerging target for improving cancer therapy outcomes. These tiny acidic intracellular organelles, long known for breaking down cellular waste, play a central role in processes cancer cells use to survive treatment and evade the immune system.
Lysosomes are acidic organelles that help cells digest and recycle components, supporting both normal cell function and a survival mechanism known as autophagy. In many cancers, autophagy helps tumor cells survive stress and resist therapies by breaking down damaged components to provide nutrients. The review explains how disrupting lysosomal functions can block autophagy and weaken cancer cell defenses, making tumors more vulnerable to chemotherapy and radiation. At the same time, interfering with lysosome-related processes can expose cancer cells to the immune system, potentially enabling stronger anti-tumor responses.
The authors summarize a wide range of strategies to target lysosomes, including drugs that alter lysosomal acidity, destabilize their membranes, or prevent their fusion with cellular structures involved in autophagy. Experimental evidence suggests that these approaches can enhance treatment effectiveness in preclinical models and may also improve how the immune system recognizes and attacks cancer cells. This dual impact of weakening tumor survival mechanisms while promoting immune activation positions lysosome-targeted therapies as a promising complement to existing treatments.
Importantly, the review also discusses how these strategies could minimize side effects by sensitizing cancer cells to lower drug doses and avoiding broad toxicity that affects healthy tissues. By focusing on processes that tumors rely on more than normal cells do, lysosomal targeting holds potential to improve the balance between treatment effectiveness and patient safety.
This comprehensive review highlights a growing shift in cancer research toward targeting fundamental cellular processes rather than only focusing on distinct genetic mutations. By modulating lysosomes, scientists aim to disarm cancer cell defenses and strengthen the body’s own immune response, offering a new direction for next-generation therapies.
The Research has been published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences
