Adoptive cell transfer: a clinical path to effective cancer immunotherapy

Adoptive cell therapy (ACT), using either autologous tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes or donor lymphocytes, has proved an effective treatment for some patients with advanced cancers. Can the ability to genetically engineer human lymphocytes for ACT further expand the use of this treatment? Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) using autologous tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes has emerged as the most effective treatment for patients with metastatic melanoma and can mediate objective cancer regression in approximately 50% of patients. The use of donor lymphocytes for ACT is an effective treatment for immunosuppressed patients who develop post-transplant lymphomas. The ability to genetically engineer human lymphocytes and use them to mediate cancer regression in patients, which has recently been demonstrated, has opened possibilities for the extension of ACT immunotherapy to patients with a wide variety of cancer types and is a promising new approach to cancer treatment.