[The effect of cytostatic therapy with bleomycin and methotrexate on cellular immune reactivity]

Considerable importance for the elimination of malignant cells has been attributed to the cellular immune system. Cytostatic drugs however are known to be immunosuppressive. The transformation response of peripheral lymphocytes to bleomycin and methotrexate was determined before and after treatment in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region. The transformation response was interpreted as an indication of the potential for the nonspecific cellular immune reaction. The cellular reaction was significantly suppressed during therapy; this suppression was then followed by an excessive reaction in some patients. The immunosuppressive effect of bleomycin was substantiated in in vitro studies of isolated lymphocytes from healthy doners. Low concentrations of methotrexate however produce excessive reactions while higher concentrations tend to have an immunosuppressive effect.