[Intraperitoneal use of human tumor necrosis factor (hrTNFalfa) in patients with ascites during advanced neoplastic disease].

The results are presented of a clinical trial with the use of hrec TNF alpha administrated intraperitoneally in advanced cancer patients suffering from malignant ascites. Fourteen patients in a terminal phase of a neoplastic disease were treated with intraperitoneal infusions of hr TNF alpha in progressively increasing doses. The procedure was repeated maximum 8 times, with one-week intervals between each dose. Response to the therapy (complete or partial remission) was observed in 8 patients. No evidence was shown of increased survival time in the cancer patients receiving TNF alpha. However, the treatment significantly increased their quality of life, especially in its psychological and somatic aspects.