Chemo-immunotherapy of ovarian cancer in a murine tumour model.
BACKGROUND
As a majority of ovarian cancer patients will ultimately develop recurrent disease, there is an urgent need for alternative or additional approaches in the treatment of this cancer.


METHODS
The antitumour effect of i.p. administered cisplatin, liposomal muramyltripeptide phosphatidylethanulamine (L-MTP-PE) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) were investigated using an i.p. growing murine ovarian tumour. Tumour growth was followed by measuring weight and survival of the mice.


RESULTS
An i.p. injection of L-MTP-PE in non-tumour bearing mice resulted in an approximately 10-fold increase in the number of peritoneal cells, which were highly cytotoxic. Nonetheless, treatment of mice inoculated with MOT cells with cisplatin, L-MTP-PE and GM-CSF using different treatment schedules did not result in inhibited tumour growth when compared to treatment with cisplatin alone.


CONCLUSIONS
Although L-MTP-PE showed an enormous increase in peritoneal cells with high tumour cytotoxic capacity, the immunotherapeutic treatment with GM-CSF and L-MTP-PE, aimed at the recruitment and activation of the peritoneal cell population, failed to result in a significant prolongation of survival.
Klimp
A H
AH
Department of Physiological Chemistry, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Groningen University, The Netherlands.
De Vries
E G
EG
Scherphof
G L
GL
Daemen
T
T
D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007167:Immunotherapy; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D017737:Macrophages, Peritoneal / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000096:biosynthesis; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines; C037144:mifamurtide; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D002945:Cisplatin