Cell therapy in pediatric blood diseases

Area of Science:

• Oncohematology
• Cell Therapy
• Immunotherapy

Background:

• Pediatric oncohematological diseases present significant mortality challenges.
• Women in science have been instrumental in advancing treatments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review multipotent and unipotent cell therapies for pediatric oncohematological diseases.
• To highlight the contributions of women in developing these life-saving treatments.

Main Methods:

• Review of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), mesenchymal stromal cell transplantation (MSCT), CAR-T cell, and CAR-NK cell therapies.
• Focus on graft sources (bone marrow, peripheral blood, cord blood) and therapeutic mechanisms.

Main Results:

• HSCT is the standard for high-risk cases.
• MSCT aids hematopoiesis and reduces graft-versus-host disease (GVHD).
• CAR-T cell therapy shows promise for leukemia but faces challenges like antigen escape and resistance.

Conclusions:

• Cell therapies have significantly improved survival in pediatric oncohematology.
• Ongoing research focuses on enhancing efficacy and minimizing toxicity of CAR-NK cells.
• Greater accessibility, especially in developing regions, requires further innovation.