Natural killer cell activity during the course of disease in patients with Hodgkin's disease.

Natural killer (NK) activity was investigated in 61 patients with Stage III and IV Hodgkin's disease during the course of disease and in 30 healthy age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. The mean NK activity was significantly lower (P less than 0.001) in untreated patients and in patients in the active phase of the disease during treatment, compared with controls. There was a similar mean value of NK activity in normal subjects, compared with patients in clinical remission. NK activity correlated with the response to therapy. In patients responding to treatment, NK activity was increasing, reaching normal range in remission. The patients not responding to therapy showed gradual decrease of NK activity during the course of disease. These results suggest that the study of NK function might offer a helpful tool in following the clinical course and the efficacy of therapy, as well as for monitoring cancer patients from an immunologic viewpoint.