ABSTRACT
I. INTRODUCTION An emerging clinical strategy is therapy based on the use of specific cell types to provide selective therapeutic benefit. The development of cellular therapy is one of the newest and most exciting concepts currently being investigated for the treatment of cancer, autoimmune diseases, and the correction of certain genetic abnormalities. Cell therapy now is used in many different clinical settings, such as the infusion of peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) to enhance hematopoietic recovery after high-dose chemotherapy, to transfer genetically modified cells to correct certain inherited and acquired diseases, and for use in adoptive immunotherapy to specifically boost immune respon siveness. While there are still important scientific, clinical, and regulatory hurdles to be overcome, it seems clear that over the next few years there will be significant progress in bringing the promise of cell therapy into clinical practice.
