IMPAIRED CYTOKINE PRODUCTION IN WHOLE-BLOOD CELL-CULTURES OF PATIENTS WITH UROLOGICAL CARCINOMAS

The production of the cytokines interferon gamma (IFNgamma), interleukin-1alpha (IL-1alpha) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) was investigated in the mitogen-stimulated whole blood cell culture media from 51 patients with urinary bladder carcinomas, 52 patients with renal carcinomas, 31 patients with prostatic carcinomas and 360 healthy controls. The cytokines were measured 4 days after induction by a sensitive enzymo-immunological assay. In the blood cell culture supernatants of the patients with urinary bladder carcinomas significancy lower levels of IFNgamma (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.001), IL-2 (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.01) and TNFalpha (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.05) were found as compared to the controls. Blood cells of patients with renal carcinomas had lower production of IFNgamma (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.01), IL-2 (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.001) and IL-1alpha (P less-than-or-equal-to 0.01), whereas the values of the total group of patients with prostatic carcinomas were not significantly different from those of the controls. Lymphocyte and monocyte counts were almost identical in the control and all tumor patient groups. When the patients with renal carcinomas and prostatic carcinomas were analyzed according to their different clinical stages we could show a gradual depression of the IFN-gamma levels, which was related to tumor burden.