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Th1/Th2 balance: an important indicator of efficacy for intra-arterial chemotherapy

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Abstract

Purpose

It has been reported that Th2 cytokines down-regulate antitumor immunity, while activation of type 1 T cells promotes antitumor immunity. However, the immunological features of liver cirrhosis (LC) patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (aHCC) treated by intra-arterial chemotherapy are still unclear. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of intra-arterial combination chemotherapy on the Th1/Th2 balance in LC patients with aHCC.

Methods

Twenty-one adult Japanese LC patients with aHCC were treated by intra-arterial combination chemotherapy. The control group was composed of 20 adult Japanese patients with chronic hepatitis C diagnosed from examination of liver biopsy specimens. All control patients were over 55 years old and were stage 1 according to the fibrosis score of Desment.

Results

Thirteen of the 21 aHCC patients (group R) showed an objective response, but the other 8 patients (group N) showed no response. There were no significant differences of Th1 cells between group R and group N either before or after chemotherapy. Although there was no significant difference from group R, group N had a significantly higher percentage of Th2 cells than the control group both before and after chemotherapy (p < 0.05 by Tukey’s test).

Conclusions

These results indicate that the Th1/Th2 balance might be a useful indicator of the effect of intra-arterial combination chemotherapy in LC patients with aHCC. Inhibition of an increase of Th2 cells might be important for the efficacy of intra-arterial chemotherapy in such patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, 6-11-1, Omorinishi, Ota-ku, Tokyo, 143-8541, Japan

    Hidenari Nagai, Daisuke Miyaki, Teppei Matsui, Masahiro Kanayama, Katsuya Higami, Kouichi Momiyama, Takashi Ikehara, Manabu Watanabe, Yasukiyo Sumino & Kazumasa Miki

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  1. Hidenari Nagai
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  2. Daisuke Miyaki
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  3. Teppei Matsui
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  4. Masahiro Kanayama
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  5. Katsuya Higami
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  6. Kouichi Momiyama
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  7. Takashi Ikehara
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  9. Yasukiyo Sumino
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  10. Kazumasa Miki
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Correspondence to Hidenari Nagai.

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Nagai, H., Miyaki, D., Matsui, T. et al. Th1/Th2 balance: an important indicator of efficacy for intra-arterial chemotherapy. Cancer Chemother Pharmacol 62, 959–963 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00280-008-0685-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00280-008-0685-y

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