The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Vol 21, 250-258, Copyright © 1976 by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
Immunology and lung cancer
EC Holmes
Carcinoma of the lung is the number one cancer killer in the United States.
The overall cure rate is about 10%, and although resection is the best
treatment available, five-year survival following operation is only 25%.
Recent studies have shown that patients with lung cancer are
immunosuppressed but that pulmonary tumors do contain tumor-associated
antigens. Studies of other human tumors indicate that immunotherapy can
augment tumor immunity and can be an effective surgical adjuvant. This
communication reviews the basic principles of tumor immunology, with
emphasis on the immunology of lung cancer, and discusses how these
principles may be applied to the therapy of lung cancer.