Autologous tumor immunizing devascularization in cancer therapy

Tumor vaccination depending on specific antigens, autologous tumor vaccination involving wide range of antigens, immunomodulating cytokines and bacterial agents have been studied extensively with the purpose of stimulating the antitumor immune response. Unfortunately these therapies showed disappointing results mainly due to undesirable mechanisms tending to dampen the antitumor immune response. We will discuss a novel approach of autologous tumor immunization using a surgical technique: autologous tumor immunizing devascularization (ATID). This approach involves complete surgical devascularization of a tumor which is then left isolated in situ in the body. The stressing pathophysiological condition of the completely isolated tumor provokes a generalized immune response which, as shown from clinical cases, leads to the elimination of the devascularized tumor and distant metastases without causing sepsis. Until now no clinical study was properly executed. The possible significance of this method which resides in its curative potential has thus escaped attention in the field of cancer therapy. This article will hypothesize optimal physiological criteria and necessary clinical conditions for ATID to be performed effectively. The main criteria are (1) complete isolation of the tumor from the vascular system, (2) sufficient devascularized tumor load to trigger a sustained generalized immune response to cancer antigens until elimination of all cancer loci, (3) tumor cell killing rate corresponding to the elicited immune response is higher than the tumor cell growth rate, and (4) patients with an uncompromised immune system. Future studies have to be performed under the indicated conditions in order to confirm the efficacy and safety of ATID as a novel approach in the treatment of cancer.