Adoptive immunotherapy with genetically modified lymphocytes in allogeneic stem cell transplantation

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from a healthy donor (allo-HSCT) represents the most potent form of cellular adoptive immunotherapy to treat malignancies. In allo-HSCT, donor T cells are double edge-swords: highly potent against residual tumor cells, but potentially highly toxic, and responsible for graft versus host disease (GVHD), a major clinical complication of transplantation. Gene transfer technologies coupled with current knowledge on cancer immunology have generated a wide range of approaches aimed at fostering the immunological response to cancer cells, while avoiding or controlling GVHD. In this review, we discuss cell and gene therapy approaches currently tested in preclinical models and in clinical trials.