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Yu Kimura, MD; Hiromi Mizuno, MD, PhD; Kenichi Satake, MD; Hideaki Tahara, MD, PhD; Mamoru Tsukuda, MD, PhD

Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2003;129:1181-1185.

Background  The biological effects of cytokines are coming to be understood. The therapeutic effects of interleukin (IL) 2, IL-12, and interferon (IFN-) in cancer treatment have been reported, but there are problems when these cytokines are systemically used as therapeutic agents.

Objective  To examine the efficacy of IL-2 and IL-12 gene–transfected tumor cell vaccines for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

Methods  Homozygous mice with the autosomal recessive nude gene (BALB/c nu/nu mice) were inoculated subcutaneously in the right flank with cells from a human oral floor SCC cell line (KB cells). The mice were then injected with IL-2 and IL-12 gene–transfected KB cells (KB/IL-2 and KB/IL-12 cells, respectively) irradiated with 2000 rad (20 Gy).

Results  No mice died soon after the injection of the gene immunotherapy. The treatment with either KB/human IL-2 (hIL-2) or KB/murine IL-12 (mIL-12) was not very effective. However, the treatment with both KB/hIL-2 and KB/mIL-12 cells significantly and safely inhibited the growth of established tumors (P = .04). There was no significant difference in antitumor effect between once-weekly and twice weekly injections of both KB/hIL-2 and KB/mIL-12 cells.

Conclusion  Double gene immunotherapy is safe and effective treatment for SCC in mice.

From the Department of Otolaryngology, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama (Drs Kimura, Mizuno, Satake, and Tsukuda), and the Department of Surgery and Bioengineering, The Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Dr Tahara), Japan. The authors have no relevant financial interest in this article.

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

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Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2005;131:1079-1085.
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