Pseudoprogression: an indicator for cure in combined immunotherapy?

Pseudoprogression is a unique, uncommon phenomenon that often hints at good prognosis. To date, there has been no report of complete remission after pseudoprogression. Here, we report successful treatment of metastatic renal clear cell cancer, using anti-PD-1 antibodies combined with autologous RetroNectin-activated cytokine-induced killer cells, in two patients who were failed to multitargeted kinase inhibitors. After early pseudoprogression, complete remission was achieved. At present, one patient has stopped therapy for about 1.5 years and is still disease free.