Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is treatment that uses the body's own immune system to treat an illness. The immune system can be boosted, directed, or restored by different kinds of immunotherapy.

There are several types of immunotherapy:

• Allergy shots are small doses of substances called allergens that are injected under the skin. Each shot helps the body "get used to" the allergen, which is the substance a person is allergic to or "sensitive" to. Allergy shots may reduce or stop sensitivity to the allergen that causes the allergic reaction. Allergy shots are mostly used to decrease sensitivity to allergens from animals, plants, and tiny bugs that are found in dust (dust mites).
• Biologics are drugs based on natural proteins. They are often used to fight autoimmune diseases, in which the immune system is attacking the body instead of just attacking things that don't naturally belong in the body. These autoimmune diseases include psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. Biologics are also used in cancer and other treatments, in which their action is to boost the immune system. Several types of drugs are known as "biologics":
  • Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDS) block the action of proteins (such as tumor necrosis factor) produced by immune cells that cause joint inflammation.

    Note:

    Not all DMARDs are "biologics."
    • Slow-acting antirheumatic drugs (SAARDs) is another name for disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs).
    • Anti-tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) drugs block the action of a protein called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). TNF causes inflammation, which is part of the body's response to injury and infection. When TNF acts on the tissue lining the joints, it is thought to help cause diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Examples of anti-TNF drugs are infliximab (Remicade) and etanercept (Enbrel).
    • Tumor necrosis factor inhibiting drugs (TNF inhibitors) is another name for anti-TNF drugs.
  • Cytokines are proteins made by white blood cells. They can also be made in a laboratory. Cytokines, such an interferons and interleukins, can kill cells such as cancer cells to slow the spread of disease, and can also activate, or wake up, the immune system to fight the disease. Cytokines are used to treat a wide range of diseases, including leukemia, chronic hepatitis, and genital warts.
  • Monoclonal antibodies are designed to recognize specific proteins that are found on the surface of some cells. The monoclonal antibody recognizes the protein and locks onto it (like a key in a lock). This may then trigger the body's immune system to attack and destroy the cells. Monoclonal antibodies are used to treat cancers such as lymphoma, and are beginning to be used to treat diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Rituximab (Rituxan) is an example of a monoclonal antibody.
• Contact sensitizers are irritating substances put on the skin to cause an allergic reaction. They are used to fight warts that do not get better with other treatment.
• Vaccinations expose the body to a weakened form of bacteria or virus, or to a small part of a bacteria or virus. The body's immune system reacts by making proteins (antibodies) to fight the infection. The antibodies stay in the body and keep the person from becoming sick if he or she is exposed to the infection again. Vaccinations are used to fight viruses such as varicella (chicken pox) and influenza, and bacteria such as pneumococcus and meningococcus. Vaccines are also being studied as a way to protect people against some forms of cancer.