INTERFERON-ALPHA - EVOLVING THERAPY FOR AIDS-ASSOCIATED KAPOSIS-SARCOMA

This article reviews developments over nearly 15 years in the applicat ion of interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) to the treatment of Kaposi's sarco ma (KS) in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), Th e initial success of IFN treatment for selected patients with AIDS-ass ociated KS occurred before identification of the human immunodeficienc y virus (HIV) and in the absence of any coherent view of KS pathogenes is, A more comprehensive understanding of the biology of both AIDS and KS, together with increased knowledge of the biologic effects of IFN and therapeutic advances in the treatment of HIV infection, have made IFN therapy for KS both more rational and more successful. There is ev ery reason to believe that the current results with IFN for KS can be improved on by capitalizing on recent improvements in HIV therapy and the availability of specific inhibitors of angiogenic cytokines, I sin cerely thank the Milstein family and my colleagues in the Internationa l Society for Interferon and Cytokine Research (ISICR) for recognizing this work, which is the product of many collaborations between clinic al and basic scientists in my own institution and elsewhere.