DETECTION OF URINARY INTERLEUKIN-2, INTERLEUKIN-2 RECEPTOR, AND TUMOR-NECROSIS-FACTOR LEVELS IN PATIENTS WITH SUPERFICIAL BLADDER-TUMORS AFTER INTRAVESICAL BCG IMMUNOTHERAPY
D. Balbay et al., DETECTION OF URINARY INTERLEUKIN-2, INTERLEUKIN-2 RECEPTOR, AND TUMOR-NECROSIS-FACTOR LEVELS IN PATIENTS WITH SUPERFICIAL BLADDER-TUMORS AFTER INTRAVESICAL BCG IMMUNOTHERAPY, Urology, 43(2), 1994, pp. 187-190
Objectives. To investigate the presence of urinary cytokines, after ba
cillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy, in order to provide further insi
ght into the mechanisms of action of intravesical BCG therapy. Method.
Urine levels of interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R),
and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) levels were determined in
34 patients with superficial bladder tumors after a six-week course of
intravesical BCG therapy. The urine samples were obtained at the fift
h hour following the sixth course of therapy and the determinations we
re made by using an (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) techniq
ue. Results. The pre-BCG levels of IL-2, IL-2R, and TNF (32.1 ng/L, 21
.1 ng/L, 37.6 mug/L, respectively) were increased significantly after
therapy (175.2 ng/L, 54.4 ng/L, 625.9 mug/L, respectively). These leve
ls remained significantly increased after all patients were stratified
according to tumor and patient characteristics. Conclusion. The resul
ts of this study provide further evidence for the immunologic basis of
the mechanism of action of intravesical BCG therapy.