Ely, AbdullahBloom, KoriMaepa, Mohube BettyMahlangu, John N.Pepper, Michael SeanArbuthnot, P.2020-05-282020-05-282019-08Ely, A., Bloom, K., Maepa, M.B. et al. 2019,' Gene and cell therapy in South Africa : current status and future prospects', South African Medical Journal, vol. 109, no. 8, pp. S13-S17.2078-5135 (online)0256-9574 (print)10.7196/SAMJ.2019.v109i8b.13819http://hdl.handle.net/2263/74774South Africa has a high disease burden resulting from communicable and non-communicable diseases. Current therapeutic interventions rarely result in a cure and the associated lifelong treatment places a considerable strain on an overburdened health sector. Gene and cell therapies present novel alternatives to disease management, offering the promise of a single treatment and a lifelong cure. Although challenges remain, investment in the field has started to bear fruit, with a number of gene and cell therapeutics reaching the market in the past decade. To take full advantage of these developments, it is important that a proactive approach to nurturing appropriate human and material resources is adopted in the country.en© 2019, South African Medical Association. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial Works License (CC BY-NC 3.0).Cell therapyGene therapyTissue transplantClinical managementHealth care sectorSouth Africa (SA)Article