Serum-mediated immunosuppression: a possible tumor marker in patients with ovarian carcinoma

Serum samples from 25 patients with ovarian carcinoma were tested for their suppressive effects on in vitro response of normal lymphocytes. Patients examined prior to primary surgery showed a significantly greater suppression than did patients examined after a radical operation. Suppression was detected both in a natural killer cell assay and in an assay of phytohemagglutinin-induced lymphoproliferation. Only the results of the later test showed a correlation to the clinical course: Those patients who died during the first year of follow-up presented the most marked suppression. Serial determinations performed in a few patients indicated a certain correlation between immunosuppression and tumor burden. It is concluded that this test may give additional prognostic information in patients with ovarian carcinoma.