title: The Role of High Dose Interleukin-2 in the Era of Targeted Therapy.
abstract: We assessed survival outcomes following high dose interleukin-2 in a contemporary cohort of patients during the era of targeted agents.
  
  
  
  We retrospectively reviewed the records of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma treated with high dose interleukin-2 between July 2007 and September 2014. Clinicopathological data were abstracted and patient response to therapy was based on RECIST (Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors), version 1.1 criteria. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate progression-free and overall survival in the entire cohort, the response to high dose interleukin-2 in regard to previous targeted agent therapy and the response to the targeted agent in relation to the response to high dose interleukin-2.
  
  
  
  We identified 92 patients, of whom 87 had documentation of a response to high dose interleukin-2. Median overall survival was 34.4 months from the initiation of high dose interleukin-2 therapy in the entire cohort. Patients who received targeted therapy before high dose interleukin-2 had overall survival (median 34.4 and 30.0 months, p = 0.88) and progression-free survival (median 1.5 and 1.7 months, p = 0.8) similar to those in patients who received no prior therapy, respectively. Additionally, patients with a complete or partial response to high dose interleukin-2 had similar outcomes for subsequent targeted agents compared to patients whose best response was stable or progressive disease (median overall survival 30.1 vs 25.4 months, p = 0.4).
  
  
  
  Our data demonstrate that patient responses to high dose interleukin-2 and to targeted agents before and after receiving high dose interleukin-2 are independent. As such, carefully selected patients should be offered high dose interleukin-2 for the possibility of a complete and durable response without the fear of limiting the treatment benefit of targeted agents.
authors.forename: Jessie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gills
authors.forename: William P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pate
authors.forename: Sida
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Van Veldhuizen
authors.forename: Moben
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mirza
authors.forename: Jeffery M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Holzbeierlein
authors.forename: Eugene K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002292:Carcinoma, Renal Cell / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D007680:Kidney Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000077982:Progression-Free Survival; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D007376:Interleukin-2
keywords: carcinoma; interleukin-2; kidney; molecular targeted therapy; neoplasm metastasis; renal cell