Immunotherapy: bewitched, bothered, and bewildered no more.
The field of immunotherapy holds clear promise not only for the development of new approaches to cancer and other diseases, but also for providing fundamental insight into the human immune response. In order for this promise to be realized, however, the scientific community must overcome an array of challenges. These challenges reflect not only the difficulties inherent in conducting investigations in human patients, but also difficulties created by the culture and practice of our own institutions, reward structure, and funding mechanisms. We suggest steps to be taken to reinvigorate basic research in human subjects as part of the mainstream of science.
Steinman
Ralph M
RM
Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Immunology, Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10021-6399, USA. steinma@mail.rockefeller.edu
Mellman
Ira
I
D000818:Animals; D035843:Biomedical Research; D019496:Cancer Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003713:Dendritic Cells / Q000276:immunology; D006805:Human Experimentation; D006801:Humans; D007107:Immune System / Q000502:physiology; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007167:Immunotherapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D017712:Peer Review, Research; D011643:Publishing; D012109:Research Support as Topic
D019496:Cancer Vaccines