The development of the immune system is a very complicated process. Stem cells in the bone marrow continually give rise to the white blood cells responsible for producing antibodies (B-lymphocytes), recognizing and destroying foreign cells (T-lymphocytes) and performing immune surveillance for cancer and foreign cells. Immunodeficiency results when the normal complex interactions of the immune system required to do this fail, resulting in susceptibility to infections or cancer.

Types and Severity of Immunodeficiency Diseases

Disease severity can range from mild to fatal, depending upon what part of the immune system is affected. Immunodeficiency can originate in normal individuals as a consequence of chemotherapy, viral infections (such as AIDS, which is caused by the HIV virus), or as the result of other processes that prevent immune system function. When immunodeficiency occurs in this manner, it is called acquired.

In contrast, immunodeficiency can also...