Lymphokine-activated killer activity of tumor-associated and peripheral blood lymphocytes isolated from patients with ascites ovarian tumors.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) and tumor-associated lymphocytes (TALs) were isolated from 36 patients with advanced ovarian adenocarcinoma and peritoneal effusions for study of lymphokine-activated killer activity. PBLs and TALs cultured in vitro for 3-5 days in the presence of interleukin-2 (IL-2, supernatant of the MLA 144 gibbon cell line, or human recombinant IL-2) expressed higher levels of cytotoxicity as compared to cells cultured in medium alone, against natural killer (NK)-susceptible (K562) or NK-resistant targets (Daudi and the human ovarian carcinoma cell line SW626). When ovarian tumor cells, freshly isolated from carcinomatous ascites or surgical specimens, were used as target cells in the cytotoxicity assay, 8 of 14 PBLs and 5 of 7 TAL preparations lysed the autologous tumor after treatment with IL-2, while no spontaneous reactivity was observed in any of the 14 patients tested. Although levels of lysis were usually relatively low, these data demonstrate that PBLs and TALs from ovarian cancer patients (TALs usually exhibiting low NK activity) when stimulated in vitro by IL-2 acquire some cytotoxic potential against the autologous tumor.