immunotherapies

Immunotherapies are treatments that leverage or modulate the immune system to prevent or treat disease. They can amplify protective immune responses against pathogens or tumors, or suppress harmful immune activity in autoimmune conditions. In cancer care, immunotherapies aim to recognize malignant cells and generate durable antitumor activity, sometimes with fewer collateral effects than traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy.

Major approaches include monoclonal antibodies that target cancer cells or immune checkpoints, antibody-drug conjugates, cancer vaccines, and immune modulators such as cytokines. Checkpoint inhibitors block inhibitory signals on immune cells—examples include PD-1/PD-L1 and CTLA-4 inhibitors—and can unleash T cell–mediated tumor destruction. Adoptive cell transfer methods, including CAR-T cell therapy and other engineered T cell or natural killer cell therapies, involve modifying patient or donor cells to enhance tumor recognition. Therapeutic cancer vaccines aim to stimulate tumor-specific immunity. Oncolytic viruses selectively infect tumors and stimulate immune responses. Bispecific antibodies recruit immune cells to tumors. Cytokines such as interleukins and interferons can boost or redirect immune activity.

Outside oncology, immunotherapies include biologic agents that dampen inflammatory pathways in autoimmune diseases, vaccines that prime immunity against infectious agents, and allergy immunotherapy that desensitizes responses to specific allergens. In infectious diseases, therapeutic vaccines and monoclonal antibodies can play roles in prevention or treatment.

Risks include immune-related adverse events affecting multiple organ systems, cytokine release syndrome, and neurotoxicity in some regimens. Treatment choice depends on disease type, biomarker status, prior therapies, and patient factors; many immunotherapies require careful monitoring and multidisciplinary care. Regulatory approval and clinical trial data continue to evolve as research advances.