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Review
. 2019;20(1):23-31.
doi: 10.1631/jzus.B1800421.

Ethical considerations of cellular immunotherapy for cancer

Sang-Sang Ren  1 , Jing-Wen Deng  2 , Meng Hong  2 , Yan-Li Ren  2 , Hai-Jing Fu  2 , Yan-Ning Liu  2 , Zhi Chen  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Ethical considerations of cellular immunotherapy for cancer

Sang-Sang Ren et al. J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2019.

Abstract

With the rapid development of immunology, molecular biology, and associated technologies such as next-generation sequencing, cellular immunotherapy has recently become the fourth major cancer treatment. Immunotherapies based on T cells, natural killer cells, and dendritic cells play key roles in cancer immunotherapy. However, their application in clinical practice raises several ethical issues. Thus, studies should focus on proper adherence to basic ethical principles that can effectively guide and solve related clinical problems in the course of treatment, improve treatment effects, and protect the rights and interests of patients. In this review, we discuss cellular immunotherapy-related ethical issues and highlight the ethical practices and current status of cellular immunotherapy in China. These considerations may supplement existing ethical standards in cancer immunotherapy.

Keywords: Cancer; Cellular immunotherapy; Ethical issue.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Compliance with ethics guidelines: Sang-sang REN, Jing-wen DENG, Meng HONG, Yan-li REN, Hai-jing FU, Yan-ning LIU, and Zhi CHEN declare that they have no conflict of interest.

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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