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Cellular Immune Status of Patients with Pelvic Cancer
Author(s) -
Yamagata S.,
Green G. H.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of obstetrics and gynaecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.734
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1479-828X
pISSN - 0004-8666
DOI - 10.1111/j.1479-828x.1976.tb02573.x
Subject(s) - immune system , immune status , lymphocyte , medicine , cancer , cervix , peripheral blood lymphocyte , carcinoma , cervical cancer , depression (economics) , cellular immunity , oncology , immunology , gastroenterology , economics , macroeconomics
Summary: An improved method of whole blood culture to estimate lymphocyte response to phytohaemoagghrtinin (PHA) was established to demonstrate the immune status of patients with pelvic cancer. Lymphocyte response was much higher than that from isolated lymphocyte cultures, and when related to the peripheral lymphocyte count reflected immune status more faithfully than that from a unit number of cells. Using the technique, 100 healthy controls and 432 cancer patients of pre‐treatment or post‐treatment status were examined. The immune status in the majority of patients with benign tumours and in those with carcinoma in situ (CIS) of the cervix was found to be within normal limits, whereas that of patients with invasive cancer was depressed in many cases. The degree of depression related more to the volume of cancer tissue than to the clinical stage. Surgically treated patients mainly demonstrated normal immune status, whereas most post‐radiation patients showed a depression for long periods. The possible causes of the immunodepression seen in cancer patients are briefly discussed.