immunotherapy /-ther″əpē/ [L, immunis + Gk, therapeia, treatment] , the application of immunological knowledge and techniques to prevent and treat disease. Examples include the administration of increasing doses of allergens in the treatment of allergies, the use of immunostimulants and immunosuppressants, the transfer of immunocompetent cells and tissues from one person to another, some treatments for cancer, and the use of interferon for its antiviral and antitumor properties. −immunotherapeutic, adj.
