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Several groups have used gene therapy to treat different types of B-cell malignancies. The protocol: A leukemic patient's T cells are harvested by leukapheresis; then, retroviral vectors are used to introduce a T-cell receptor that locks on to a protein marker on the B cell, CD19. These engineered T cells are encouraged to multiply and are reinfused into the patient. This technique of using engineered T cells to attack B cells has yielded dramatic short-term success with low-grade B-cell malignancies, such as chronic lymphocytic leukemia and follicular B-cell lymphomas. Two teams now report partial success with an aggressive B-cell malignancy: chemotherapy-refractory, relapsed B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Patients with aggress…