Advanced strategies to enhance the safety, persistence, and efficacy of CAR-T cells in solid tumors

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has revolutionized the treatment of hematologic cancers but encounters challenges, including severe treatment-related toxicities, a highly suppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), limited long-term persistence, and poor trafficking/infiltration into solid tumors. This review outlines recent genetic engineering strategies to address these issues and enhance the safety, durability, and efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy. To reduce cytokine release syndrome and neurotoxicity, methods such as affinity-tuned and humanized scFvs, hinge/TM optimization, and ITAM calibration have been developed, along with programmable “switch-off” and “switch-on” systems that include suicide genes, antibody-bridging switches, and optogenetic or hypoxia-gated circuits. TME remodeling strategies utilize nanomaterials for targeted cytokine delivery, cell-surface “backpack” systems, and engineered oncolytic viruses that release cytokines or checkpoint-blocking agents. For durability and resistance to exhaustion, precise genome engineering techniques, including CRISPR-based editing and multiplexed shRNA platforms, were employed to target inhibitory receptors and exhaustion-driving transcriptional programs. Additionally, chemokine-receptor engineering and local biomaterial-based delivery systems are discussed as ways to enhance CAR-T trafficking and intratumoral persistence. These innovations collectively point toward integrated, patient-specific CAR-T platforms that incorporate safety controls, metabolic and transcriptional flexibility, and enhanced trafficking through the TME to broaden clinical use.