Objective: The aim of this paper was to verify the feasibility and validity of autologous cytokine-induced killer cells (Auto-CIKs) treatments in solid malignancy patients.
Methods: Amplification, phenotypic characteristics, antitumor cytotoxicity, and clinical and immunological response of Auto-CIKs derived from 66 cases of patients with solid tumor of different pathological types and at different clinical stages were examined in a large-scale clinical trail.
Results: We found that seriousness of disease and metastasis status has no influence on effective components and antitumor activity of Auto-CIKs. Comparing the cytotoxicity against various tumor cells with LAKs, CIKs showed more effective cytotoxicity against NK sensitive and nonsensitive solid tumor cell lines, even at a low E/T ratio (6:1). In 20 patients receiving multicycles of Auto-CIKs infusions, 3 reached partial response (PR), 14 obtained stable disease (SD), and 3 died. Th1-kind cytokines secretion in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs increased significantly, according with the enhanced cytolytic activity against K562 cells of them after multicycles of Auto- CIKs infusions.
Conclusions: Induction of special "Th1 bias" in PBMCs after multicycles of Auto-CIKs treatments suggested an immunological promoting effect of Auto-CIKs, which seems to be a suitable immunotherapy for those solid-malignance patients who are at high risk of relapse to prevent recurrence.