title: Cytokine-based therapy for melanoma: pre-clinical studies.
abstract: Incidence and mortality of human malignant melanoma has risen rapidly over recent decades. Systemic therapies for metastatic cutaneous melanoma, the most aggressive of all skin cancers, remain disappointing although immunological treatment has been more successful for melanoma than for most other tumours. With the availability of recombinant cytokines, immunotherapy for melanoma has entered a new era and a growing body of evidence suggests the efficacy of these approaches in pre-clinical models. Cytokine gene transfer to tumour cells has been demonstrated to induce tumour rejection in different murine melanoma models suggesting that vaccination with tumour cells genetically engineered to produce cytokines is an attractive strategy to enhance anti-tumour immune responses in patients with melanoma. Taken together, these data may hold significant promise for the development of effective ex vivo and in vivo systemic and gene therapy modalities to counter the highly metastatic nature of human melanoma.
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, USA.
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Shurin
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kirkwood
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Esche
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019496:Cancer Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D015316:Genetic Therapy; D016179:Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy; D007372:Interferons / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D020382:Interleukin-18 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008545:Melanoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D008546:Melanoma, Experimental / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D013997:Time Factors; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000187:drug effects; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D019496:Cancer Vaccines; D007375:Interleukin-1; D020382:Interleukin-18; D007376:Interleukin-2; D015850:Interleukin-6; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D016179:Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor; D018664:Interleukin-12; D015847:Interleukin-4; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D007372:Interferons