immunotherapy

play

noun im·mu·no·ther·a·py \ ˌi-myə-nō-ˈther-ə-pē , i-ˌmyü-nō- \

Definition of immunotherapy

:treatment or prevention of disease (such as an autoimmune disorder, allergy, or cancer) that involves the stimulation, enhancement, suppression, or desensitization of the immune system — see adoptive immunotherapy

—

immunotherapeutic

play \ˌi-myə-nō-ˌther-ə-ˈpyü-tik, i-ˌmyü-nō-\ adjective

Recent Examples of immunotherapy from the Web

Gilead Sciences, a cancer-drug maker, agreed Monday to pay about $11.9 billion to buy Kite Pharma, a move to expand its product lineup in cancer immunotherapies.

— roger yu, USA TODAY, "Gilead Sciences to buy Kite Pharma for $11.9B to expand cancer drug lineup," 28 Aug. 2017
The remaining two were treated with a kind of immunotherapy that prevents tumors from shielding themselves from the body’s immune system.

— ashley weatherford, The Cut, "Two New Vaccines Might Be Able to Prevent Skin Cancer," 8 Aug. 2017
The effects of the immunotherapy lasted for seven-and-a-half months.

— david jensen, sacbee, "California stem cell agency researching cures for brain cancer afflicting McCain," 20 July 2017
Novartis refers to the drug as immunotherapy, not gene therapy.

— michael nedelman, CNN, "'Astounding' second-chance cancer drug heading for FDA approval," 14 July 2017
The unanimous recommendation from the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee means the treatment could be approved by the FDA by the end of September, forging a new path in the immunotherapy frontier.

— laurie mcginley, chicagotribune.com, "Gene therapy as cancer treatment — 'a true living drug' — gets FDA endorsement," 13 July 2017
Many immunotherapy experts think the greatest progress against cancer will occur when researchers figure out how to combine the approaches.

— laurie mcginley, Alaska Dispatch News, "First gene therapy – ‘a true living drug’ – on the cusp of FDA approval," 13 July 2017
The unanimous recommendation means the agency could approve the new treatment by the end of September, forging an exciting new path in the immunotherapy frontier.

— paige winfield cunningham, Washington Post, "The Health 202: Doctors make last-ditch effort to sink GOP health-care bill," 13 July 2017
The other five all had relapses, but one became cancer free after an ant-PD-1 immunotherapy.

— beth mole, Ars Technica, "Custom cancer vaccines safely fight and kill tumors in early human trials," 6 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'immunotherapy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of immunotherapy

International Scientific Vocabulary

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1910

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Medical Dictionary

immunotherapy

play

noun im·mu·no·ther·a·py \ -ˈther-ə-pē \

medical Definition of immunotherapy

plural immunotherapies

:treatment or prevention of disease (such as a cancer, autoimmune disorder, or allergy) that involves the stimulation, enhancement, suppression, or desensitization of the immune system

Demonstrating promise is immunotherapy, in which special medications are used to beef up the body's own cancer-fighting cells.
—Harvard Health Letter, August 1997

If environmental control and pharmacotherapy fail to control symptoms, then allergen immunotherapy—also called hyposensitization or desensitization—may be considered.
—Discover, March 1998

— called also immune therapy; see adoptive immunotherapy

—

immunotherapeutic

play \-ˌther-ə-ˈpyüt-ik\ adjective

- immunotherapeutic activity
- immunotherapeutic methods

Learn More about immunotherapy

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about immunotherapy

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immunotherapy

Definition of immunotherapy

immunotherapeutic

Recent Examples of immunotherapy from the Web

Origin and Etymology of immunotherapy

Medical Dictionary

immunotherapy

medical Definition of immunotherapy

immunotherapeutic

Learn More about immunotherapy

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immunotherapy

Definition of immunotherapy

immunotherapeutic

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immunotherapy

medical Definition of immunotherapy

immunotherapeutic

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