Adoptive Cell Therapy
Also written as: ACT — Adoptive Cell Therapy
Treatment approach involving the extraction, modification, and reinfusion of a patient's immune cells to enhance anti-tumor activity.
Full Definition
Adoptive cell therapy encompasses various immunotherapeutic strategies where immune effector cells are isolated from patients, potentially modified or expanded ex vivo, and then reinfused to enhance the immune response against cancer. This includes tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy, engineered T-cell therapies like CAR-T cells, and other approaches using natural killer cells or other immune populations. The therapy aims to overcome immune suppression and provide patients with a more potent anti-tumor immune response than their native immune system can mount. Success has been particularly notable in hematologic malignancies, with expanding applications in solid tumors.
In Context
- "The clinical trial evaluated adoptive cell therapy using tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in metastatic melanoma patients." — Clinical trial protocol
- "Manufacturing requirements for adoptive cell therapy include specialized GMP facilities and quality control testing." — Regulatory document