Biological response modifier (BRM) is a generic term of the biological products that exerts their cytotxic effects on cancer cells. The progress in culture techniques and molecular biology have made it possible to use clinically a variety of natural and recombinant BRMs for the treatment of malignant tumors since the early 1980's. The large numbers of clinical trials have been conducted in phase I and phase II trials for various kinds of malignant tumors, including malignant melanoma and mycosis fungoides (MF) . In these recent trials in Japan, the marked anti-tumor efficacy of interferon (IFNs) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has been experienced.
It is rather difficult to summarize various clinical trials. In this manuscript, a couple of our cases treated successfully with TNF for Merkel cell carcinoma and with IFN-γ for MF would be presented, in addition to the significant anti-tumor effects of BRMs recently reported in the manuscripts. Our data from clinical researches conducted with IFN-β is also shown. Finally, the clinical significance of BRM will be discussed briefly as the future cancer therapy.
