In addition, the blockade of immune checkpoint molecules (e.g. programmed cell death protein 1, PD-1; cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4, CTLA-4) using antibodies has demonstrated great promise for sculpting tumor immunogenicity in certain solid tumors (e.g. melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer) 8; however, response rates to immune checkpoint inhibitors tremendously vary in different tumor types, which is mainly attributed to the complex nature of TME 9. This evidence concerns the gene PDCD1 and non-small cell lung carcinoma.