Adjuvant immunotherapy of lung cancer with BCG cell wall skeleton (BCG-CWS)

Four hundred fifty-five patients with lung cancer were treated with oil-attached cell-wall skeleton of bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG-CWS) as adjuvant immunotherapy following initial conventional therapy. The overall survival period of the patients was prolonged significantly as compared with that of 380 patients in a historical control group receiving initial conventional therapy alone (p < 0.0001). The prolongation of the survival period of the patients was also statistically significant when classified according to clinical stages and histological cell types. The therapeutic effect was remarkable in patients combined with malignant pleurisy. Intrapleural injection of BCG-CWS resulted in not only prevention of accumulation of pleural effusion and abrogation of tumor cells but also in prolongation of survival period (p = 0.016). No serious side effects due to BCG-CWS were experienced. From the previous experimental studies and clinical experiences with human tumors, it can be concluded that adjuvant immunotherapy with BCG-CWS is a useful therapeutic modality for lung cancer, especially in cases combined with malignant pleurisy.