The present invention relates to the discovery of a role of the nuclear receptor retinoid-related orphan receptor gamma (RORgamma) in tumor suppression. The introduction and expression of RORgamma result in genes activation within innate immune cells that trigger recognition and suppression of tumor cells. Thus, in various embodiments described herein, the invention encompasses a composition or a cell comprising a viral vector comprising nucleic acid sequences encoding RORgamma under the control of a neutrophil specific promoter. Additionally, the invention relates to methods of treating cancer by administering to a subject a composition that confers or increases innate immune cell anti-tumor immunity, methods for providing anti-tumor immunity in a subject, methods of stimulating innate immune response to a cell population or a tissue in a mammal and methods of diagnosing anti-tumor immunity response. Furthermore, the invention encompasses a kit for carrying out the aforementioned methods.
