Diminished natural killer-cell activity of interstitial pulmonary cell populations from patients with carcinoma of the lung.
Natural killer-cell activity of fresh interstitial pulmonary cell populations from patients with squamous cell and adenocarcinoma of the lung and carcinoma metastatic to the lung was assessed and compared to that of apparently normal lung. No increase in the percentage of lymphoid cell populations was noted in the interstitium of lung contiguous with tumor, and the cytotoxic capacity of the cells present was depressed as compared to that of normal lung. Natural killer-cell function appears to be down regulated in lung cancer and may be amenable to therapies which activate such cytotoxicity in vivo.
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000276:immunology; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000276:immunology; D002452:Cell Count; D003601:Cytotoxicity Tests, Immunologic; D006801:Humans; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology*; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology* / Q000556:secondary; D008875:Middle Aged