Current Status of Cell-Based Therapies for Vitiligo

Abstract

Vitiligo is a chronic pigmentary disease with complex etiology, the signs of which are caused by the destruction of melanocytes in the epidermis, leading to the lack of melanin pigment responsible for skin coloration. The treatment of vitiligo, which aims at repigmentation, depends both on the clinical characteristics of the disease as well as on molecular markers that may predict the response to treatment. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the clinical evidence for vitiligo cell-based therapies taking into account the required procedures and equipment necessary to carry them out as well as their effectiveness in repigmentation, assessed using the percentage of repigmentation of the treated area. This review was conducted by assessing 55 primary clinical studies published in PubMed and ClinicalTrails.gov between 2000 and 2022. This review concludes that the extent of repigmentation, regardless of the treatment method, is highest in stable localized vitiligo patients. Moreover, therapies that combine more than one cell type, such as melanocytes and keratinocytes, or more than one method of treatment, such as the addition of NV-UVB to another treatment, increase the chances of >90% repigmentation. Lastly, this review concludes that various body parts respond differently to all treatments.