Using murine transplantable transitional cell carcinoma (MBT2), the effect of ethylchlorformate (ECF) polymerized tumor protein was compared with that of bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG). Seventy-five C3H/He mice were challenged with an intradermal inoculation of 5 X lo5 viable MBT2 tumor cells and divided into five groups. Each group was intradermally administered with 0.01 mg of ECF (low ECF), 0.25 mg of ECF (high ECF), 0.1 mg of ECF and lo6 CFU BCG (ECF/BCG), lo6 CFU of BCG alone or normal saline (control) weekly for 10 weeks. The mean survival rate for the treatment groups was 64 to 73 days and significantly longer than that for the control group (P < 0.001, Savage). The incidence of biologically active tumor progression was significantly less for the treatment groups (low ECF, 53%; high ECF, 33%; ECF/BCG, 7%; BCG, 27%) compared with the control group (87%; P < 0.5, chi-square. The mean rate of tumor growth was significantly lower for all treatment groups than for the control group (P < 0.001, ANOVA and SNK), and the ECF/BCG group had the lowest growth rate despite a higher incidence of local granulomatous reaction. In this study, immunotherapy significantly prolonged the survival rate, decreased the incidence of biologically active tumor progression, and slowed the rate of tumor growth. The combination of ECF polymerized tumor protein and BCG had the greatest effect, suggesting that the effect of the vaccine was increased with BCG.
Cancer 63:667-670, 1989.
UR PREVIOUS STUDY showed that 1 -butanol extract 0 was beneficial for the treatment of bladder cancer.'
Several trials have been performed in the immunotherapy of bladder cancer, and bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) immunotherapy is currently widely applied for the management of bladder cancer, especially carcinoma in ~i t u . * , ~ However, adverse side effects from intravesical BCG such as frequent vesical irritability and occasional fever cannot be ~nderestimated.~ Therefore, more specific immunotherapy with less toxicity is needed to manage bladder cancer, especially invasive tumors. Some monoclonal antibodies have not yet become available for this immunotherapy despite successful trials on the immunodiagnosis of bladder cancer patients. Another option is the use of ethylchlorformate (ECF) polymerized tumor protein (PTP) as an active immunomodifier in bladder cancer patients. The current study assesses this modality by comparing with the most promising one, BCG treatment, in regard to tumor growth, survival rate, and granuloma formation at the site of injection using the murine bladder tumor model.