Adoptive Immunotherapy Strategies with Cytokine-Induced Killer (CIK) Cells in the Treatment of Hematological Malignancies

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Frederic Carsten Schmeel¹  Leonard Christopher Schmeel¹  Sanna-Marie Gast² 

[1] Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik III, Center for Integrated Oncology (CIO), University Hospital Bonn, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Straße 25, 53105 Bonn, Germany;

关键词: CIK (cytokine-induced killer) cells;    clinical trials;    immunotherapy;    cancer treatment;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms150814632

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells are a heterogeneous population of immune effector cells that feature a mixed T- and Natural killer (NK) cell-like phenotype in their terminally-differentiated CD3⁺CD56⁺ subset. The easy availability, high proliferation rate and widely major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-unrestricted antitumor activity of CIK cells contribute to their particularly advantageous profile, making them an attractive approach for adoptive immunotherapy. CIK cells have shown considerable cytotoxicity against both solid tumors and hematological malignancies in vitro and in animal studies. Recently, initial clinical experiences demonstrated the feasibility and efficacy of CIK cell immunotherapy in cancer patients, even at advanced disease stages. Likewise, the clinical application of CIK cells in combination with standard therapeutic procedures revealed synergistic antitumor effects. In this report, we will focus our consideration on CIK cells in the treatment of hematological malignancies. We will give insight into the latest advances and future perspectives and outline the most prominent results obtained in 17 clinical studies. Overall, CIK cells demonstrated a crucial impact on the treatment of patients with hematological malignancies, as evidenced by complete remissions, prolonged survival durations and improved quality of life. However, up to now, the optimal application schedule eventually favoring their integration into clinical practice has still to be developed.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.