CMV Specific T Cell donor lymphocyte infusion(Duke University)

Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a benign infectious agent in the normal host, but in immunocompromised individuals, such as recipients of stem cell transplants, this virus is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. While pharmacologic agents exist to treat CMV disease, these medications have numerous side effects, the most serious of which is myelosuppression. The frequency of neutropenia ranges from 41% to 58% in stem cell transplant (SCT) patients treated with ganciclovir. Withdrawal of anti-CMV therapy due to these complications may result in recurrent disease. The restoration of cellular immunity to CMV is necessary in order to prevent viral reactivation, and the generation of cytotoxic T cells against CMV early antigens is perhaps the most important part of the host immune response to CMV. At day 40 post-transplant, for example, at least 65% of SCT patients are deficient in CD8+ T-cell responses to CMV. Previous studies have demonstrated a direct correlation between CMV infection in these patients and cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) function, with patients who have defects in cellular immunity being at high risk for invasive CMV disease. The median time post-transplant for the development of CMV disease is 50 to 60 days, and CMV re-activation occurs in 70 to 80% of CMV sero-positive SCT recipients. Without anti-viral therapy as many as 50% of these patients will develop CMV disease.