Neoplasms of immunoregulatory T cells in clinical investigation.

Normal T cells play a critical role in the regulation of humoral immune responses by acting as potentiators (helper cells) or inhibitors (suppressor cells) of the process by which B cells differentiate into immunoglobulin-secreting plasma cells. Certain diseases in which malignant T cells appear to retain an immunoregulatory function are characterized by a propensity of a lymphomatous T-cell population to infiltrate skin. Some cutaneous T-cell lymphomas, as well as some T-cell neoplasms without dermatologic involvement, provide a homogeneous supply of T lymphocytes which act as immunoregulators. The availability of neoplastic T cells with immunoregulatory properties could accelerate the serologic and biochemical analysis of the cellular control of normal immunity in man.