Abstract:
Immunotherapy is now a recognized treatment option for several types of cancer. However,
some cancer patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are subject to immune-related
adverse events, including induced diabetes mellitus. The exact role and molecular/genetic action of
ICIs in diabetes are still not well understood. Elucidating the underlying mechanisms in a proper
fashion would allow better refining of biomarkers that would help diagnose patients at risk of altered
immune system homeostasis, but would also hold the potential of new therapeutic options for
diabetes. In the present narrative review, we propose to discuss the case of autoimmune diabetes
following treatment with ICIs and the role of ICIs in the pathophysiology of diabetes. We also present
some scarce available data on interesting potential immune therapies for diabetes.
