Antibody-drug synergism: An assessment of specific passive immunotherapy in bronchial carcinoma

Abstract

Patients with bronchial carcinoma who had had radical resection of the primary tumour were treated with a combination of drugs and tumour-specific immunoglobulin (antibody-drug synergism, A.D.S.). The antisera were raised in goats by immunisation with tumour cells from patients, and given to those patients after absorption to remove antibody against normal human tissues. 32 patients received A.D.S. treatment and 37 patients received chemotherapy only. Although the differences are not statistically significant there have been 22 recurrences including 15 deaths in the chemotherapy group and 8 recurrences including 6 deaths in the A.D.S group. There was only one clinically significant reaction to heterologous immunoglobulin.