Interleukin 2 and interferon-gamma activities of mononuclear cells from regional lymph nodes in patients with gastric cancer.

The interleukin 2 (IL-2) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) activities of regional lymph node mononuclear cells (LNMC) were studied in 22 patients with gastric cancer. Regional LNMC could produce high levels of IL-2 and IFN-gamma independent of the disease extension or the location of the lymph nodes. The activities of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from cancer patients were decreased especially in advanced disease compared to controls. The lymph node CD4+ cells were responsible for the bulk of IL-2 activity, whereas both CD4+ and CD8+ cells were equally capable of producing IFN-gamma. The proportion of T cells in LNMC was similar to that seen in PBMC, however, CD4+ cells predominated over CD8+ cells in the lymph nodes, contributing to higher activities of IL-2 and IFN-gamma in LNMC. Furthermore, significant cytotoxic activity could be induced from PBMC using the culture supernatant derived from autologous LNMC in cancer patients. This study suggests that regional lymph nodes are strategically located near the tumor and the local cells are capable of producing high levels of IL-2 and IFN-gamma.