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| Detailed Guide: Kidney Cancer |
Biologic Therapy (Immunotherapy) |
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The goal of biologic therapy is to boost the body's immune system to
more effectively fight off or destroy cancer cells. Until recently,
this was the most common first-line therapy for advanced kidney cancer,
and it may still be helpful for some people. Because biologic therapy
can be hard to give and can cause serious side effects, some doctors
now reserve it for people who cancers don't respond to targeted
therapies.
The main immunotherapy drugs used in kidney cancer are cytokines
(proteins that activate the immune system). The 2 cytokines most often
used are interleukin-2 (IL-2) and interferon-alpha. Both cytokines
cause these cancers to shrink to less than half their original size in
about 10% to 20% of patients. Patients who respond to IL-2 tend to have
lasting responses.
Combining low doses of both cytokines was once thought to be as
effective as high-dose IL-2, with fewer and less severe side effects,
but recent studies have not supported this. Most doctors think that
high-dose IL-2 has a better chance of shrinking the cancer.
The possible side effects of cytokine therapy, especially high-dose
IL-2, include:
- extreme fatigue
- low blood pressure
- fluid buildup in the lungs
- trouble breathing
- kidney damage
- heart attacks
- intestinal bleeding
- diarrhea or abdominal pain
- high fever and chills
- rapid heart beat
- mental changes
These side effects are often severe and, rarely, can be fatal. For this
reason, they are not used in people who are in poor overall health to
begin with. Only doctors experienced in the use of these cytokines
should give this treatment.
Cytokines can also be used as part of some experimental immunotherapy
techniques. These are described in the section, "What's New in Kidney
Cancer Research and Treatment?"
Last Revised: 10/22/2007
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