Immunotherapy of Cancer in Man

The monograph describes the immunological parameters of the host tumor relationship. The material is collected from 383 experimental and clinical papers, and covers a variety of subjects related to immunotherapy of human cancer. These include a discussion of the role of immunosuppression, and immunocompetence in the etiology, pathogenesis and prognosis of cancer, a basic description of the physicochemical changes that characterize the surface of the malignant cell, a comprehensive, but succinct, review of the characteristics of tumor antigens and a description of the methodology used to detect these antigens in man. This is followed by an outline of the types of immune responses, which human tumor antigens may evoke, their presence in various neoplastic disease categories, and their utilization in immunodiagnosis. Finally, an outline of the basic features of experimental immunotherapy in animals is followed by a critical review of the current status of and future outlook for immunotherapy in human cancer.