Immunotherapy of metastasizing renal cell carcinoma. Results of a multicentered trial

119 patients with stage-IV renal cell carcinoma were treated using immunotherapy with autologous tumor vaccine. The immunization was carried out at monthly intervals, the patients were restaged every 3 months using X-ray, ultrasound scanning or computed tomography as well as bone scintigraphy in the follow-up. The patients' follow-up periods run from 6 to 66 months averaging in 38.5 months. 6 complete remissions, 4 partial responses and 29 stable diseases were seen, whereas 54 patients had progressive disease. Patients with a T1 primary tumor all survived the follow-up period irrespective of whether lymph node metastases (n = 2), venous invasion (n = 12) or distant metastases (n = 6) were present at the time of operation. Follow-up periods run from 12 to 48 months (averaging 23 months). Patients with T2 tumors showed survival up to 50 months postoperatively, of these only 3 died. Follow-up averages 30 months. The 3 patients died within the first year after operation. Patients with very large primary tumors showed the poor prognosis normally expected. 23 of these 40 patients died after a mean follow-up of 15 months. These results may indicate that immunotherapy can slow down tumor progression and induce objective responses. Those patients with small primary lesions apparently benefit from the treatment even though metastases are present at the time of diagnosis.