Humoral immunity following double freezing of the prostate of patients with prostatic cancer.

In these studies, double freezing of the prostate was applied to 10 patients with a confirmed histologic diagnosis of stage C and D carcinoma. The clinical courses in the first group (five patients) were favorable. In the second group (two patients), death by cachexia occurred due to the cancer. In the third group (three patients), death 4 weeks after the second cryosurgery suggests the effects of Cryoshock. In the first and second groups, the results of immunologic examinations after the second freezing did not attain the predicted levels. Comparing the results of the third group with those of the first and second groups, the primary difference was that the percentages of gamma globulins and IgE were higher in the third group preoperatively. These findings suggest that in patients with high gamma globulin percentages and high IgE levels cryosurgery of the prostate is contraindicated.