Interferon — Its Hour Come at Last?

Twenty-one years after the discovery of interferon,1 Merigan et al., in this issue of the Journal, provide convincing evidence for its effectiveness in man. In well controlled double-blind trials, leukocyte interferon reduced dissemination of cutaneous herpes zoster in patients with cancer. Interferon-treated patients also had fewer visceral complications and less post-herpetic neuralgia than placebo-treated controls. These observations raise two inter-related questions: Why has it taken so long for human interferon efficacy to be demonstrated, and what are the prospects for its future use?Although interferon's effectiveness in animal-model virus infections has been well established, shortages of human interferon have . . .