Immune-Based Therapies - FAQ

What are immune-based therapies? There are generally two basic kinds of therapy for illness: therapies that directly attack pathogens (germs, viruses, bacteria, etc.) and therapies that help the body's natural defenses do a better job of eliminating pathogens. Sometimes both types of therapy are used to compensate or deal with the damage done by the pathogens rather than focus on eliminating the pathogen or condition itself.

Immune--based therapies (IBTs) are various methods used to boost the immune system's ability to fight illnesses. As a group, immune-based therapies are in very early stages of development.

The oldest and best known IBTs are preventive vaccines that teach the body how to fight viral infections. FDA vaccines are used to protect people from Polio, smallpox, the flu, hepatitis A and B, mumps, measles, cervical cancer, and there are many hopeful vaccines for various kinds of cancer, herpes and HIV being tested.

Immune-based therapies for HIV have been attempted over the years with varying degrees of success. VGV-1 is an immune-based therapy that has demonstrated an antiviral effect in pilot studies. We are working to understand VGV-1’s effect on the immune system and to understand the effect it appears to have on the levels of HIV virus.

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