[The DNCB skin test and its comparison with the radioimmunological determination of CEA in some types of neoplasms].

The personal series consists of 140 cancer patients followed up over a period of some 3 years and submitted prior to the start of treatment to the DNCB skin test. This test indicates the patient's immune condition and the degree of reactivity shown may be useful prognostically for assessing the course of the disease and its response to immunochemotherapeutic treatment; this was confirmed in 77% of case. The skin test has now been personally associated with CEA radio-immunological metering for patients suffering from breast, lung and digestive system cancer (40 cases in all). The hypothesis, which is supported by the results obtained, is that there is a correlation between CEA titre and skin reactivity to the immunostimulus; in effect, high CEA titres have generally always corresponded to little or no DNCB skin reactivity and vice versa.