Human Tumour Immunobiology

Tumour cells in man must be immunologically “different” from normal cells and the human immune system must be able to “recognize” this difference. It has been demonstrated that: 1. Human tumour cells possess tumour-associated antigens (TAA) not present in normal tissues. 2. Mononuclear cells from patients bearing tumours are capable of destroying autologous tumour cells in in vitro experiments. 3. Plasma or serum from the tumour-bearing patient blocks the ability of that patient’s mononuclear cells to destroy autologous tumour cells.