Modulatory effects of oestrogen therapy on immunologic responsiveness

A significant reduction in the phytohaemagglutinin-induced transformation of peripheral blood lymphocytes cultured in autologous serum from patients with prostatic cancer, Peyronie's disease and transexuals following receipt of oestrogen therapy has been observed. Reduction of lymphocyte transformation in patients with prostatic cancer and without malignancy receiving oestrogen, e.g., in Peyronie's disease and in transsexuals, suggests that such reduction would appear to be related to the mode of therapy rather than with malignancy or a particular pathologic state. While no direct evidence as yet exists that such in vitro aberrations of lymphocytic responsiveness are reflective of host compromise, these observations are of potential relevance in terms of their implications in the therapeutic management of patients with prostatic and other hormonally-dependent tumours, e.g., of the breast, and responsive diseases, through their effect on the cellular immunocompetence and of the suitability of hormonally treated patients as prospective candidates for immunotherapy. Together with evidence of the androgenic and ontogenic dependence of the immunogenicity of a prostatic secretory specific auto-antigen and of its possible analog in man, attention is directed to the possible dual suppressive effect of oestrogen, i.e., on the synthesis of antigen and on the immunologic responsiveness of the host to tumour.