Effect of local administration of lymphokine-activated killer cells and interleukin-2 on malignant brain tumor patients.

Nine patients with malignant brain tumors were treated with intratumoral infusion of lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cells and interleukin-2 (IL-2). LAK cells were generated from macrophage-depleted peripheral blood lymphocytes by culturing with IL-2 for 4 days. The resulting LAK cells showed strong cytotoxic activity against tumor target cells. Three patients received sufficient LAK cells (> or = 5.76 x 10(8)) to show partial tumor response by computed tomography and clinical signs. No severe neurological side effects occurred in any patient. Intratumoral administration of LAK cells and IL-2 can be effective in patients with malignant brain tumors.