Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vol 1, 117-125, Copyright © 1983 by American Society of Clinical Oncology
The in vivo effect of thymic factor (thymostimulin) administration on circulating immune complexes and serum lysozyme levels in untreated Hodgkin's disease patients
A Velardi, F Spinozzi, P Rambotti, A Tabilio, A Losito, I Zampi, C Cernetti, MF Martelli, F Grignani and S Davis
The in vivo effect of a calf thymus extract, thymostimulin, on the levels
of circulating immune complexes (CIC) and serum lysozyme was evaluated in
32 patients with untreated Hodgkin's disease. Using the platelet
aggregation test for detecting CICs, 12 patients (37%) had positive titers
before thymostimulin treatment; 3 patients (10%) remained positive
following therapy. Serum levels of Clq-binding immune complexes were
evaluated (greater than 24.5 micrograms/ml) in 8 patients prior to
thymostimulin therapy (mean value: 42.3 micrograms/ml); 3 patients
continued to have elevated levels after treatment. Serum lysozyme levels
for Hodgkin's patients was similar to control values (10.6 vs. 8.3
micrograms/ml); however, the Hodgkin's patients with initially elevated
CICs had a lower serum lysozyme level than patients with initially normal
CICs (12.9 vs. 7.3, p less than 0.02). Thymostimulin increased serum
lysozyme levels in the Hodgkin's patients in whom the CICs were initially
elevated (7.3 vs. 10.4 micrograms/ml, p less than 0.05). These data suggest
that thymostimulin exerts an effect on the nonspecific immune system of
Hodgkin's disease patients.
