1998 Volume 38 Issue 4 Pages 301-307
Interleukin 12 (IL-12) plays a critical role in the promotion of T helper 1 phenotype lymphocytes. It has also been considered to be important for development of the antitumor immune response. I therefore investigated the production of IL-12 by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) on stimulus with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon-γ(IFN-γ) or phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Levels of IL-12 were determined by an enzyme-linked assay method in 11 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer and 11 healthy controls. There were no significant differences in IL-12 production stimulated by LPS+IFN-γ in lung cancer patients and healthy controls. However, the production of IL-12 stimulated with PHA in the lung cancer cases was significantly lower than that in healthy controls (P<0.05). IL-12 production was not dependent on tumor histological type, clinical stage or performance status. The results obtained in this study suggest a decrease in IL-12 production in lung cancer patients associated with lymphocyte dysfunction.
