inosine-pranobex and Neoplasms

Topics: Allergy and Immunology; Animals; Cell Differentiation; Disease Susceptibility; Drug Interactions; Humans; Immune System; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Immunologic Factors; Inosine Pranobex; Interleukins; Levamisole; Neoplasms; Pharmacology; Signal Transduction; T-Lymphocytes; Thymus Hormones; Toxicology

Topics: Animals; Antibody-Producing Cells; Autoimmune Diseases; Humans; Hypoxanthines; Immunity; In Vitro Techniques; Infections; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Leukocytes; Lymphocyte Activation; Mice; Neoplasms; T-Lymphocytes

Immunodepression associated with a variety of situations such as cancer or any of its major modalities of treatment (surgery, irradiation, or chemotherapy) has been effectively alleviated with Imunovir (inosine pranobex-BAN), and this has been associated with demonstrable clinical benefit to these patients. One hundred and six immunodepressed patients with solid tumors undergoing radiotherapy were treated with either Imunovir or placebo; 64% of Imunovir-treated patients were immunorestored after 3 months compared to 23% in the placebo group. Imunovir was also effectively used in 75 patients with malignant hematological disorders both as an immunorestorative agent given prophylactically to prevent infection and as a therapeutic agent to treat infections in these immunodepressed patients. In different studies involving surgical patients treated with either Imunovir or placebo, 70-81% of hypoergic or anergic patients in the Imunovir group became normoergic by day 14 of treatment compared to 5-17% of the placebo group, and this enhanced immunorestoration was associated with lower incidence of local sepsis (P less than 0.05), systemic sepsis (P less than 0.025), and postoperative mortality (P less than 0.05).

Topics: Female; Humans; Hypersensitivity, Delayed; Immune Tolerance; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Neoplasms

The immunorestorative effect of Isoprinosine (ISO) in vivo on T-cell-induced local graft-versus-host reaction (GVHR) was analyzed in 60 cancer patients randomized into three groups: 20 patients received 1 g/day ISO orally for 7 days, 20 patients received 4 g/day ISO for 7 days, and 20 patients received no treatment for 7 days. The local GVHR was assessed before and after the 7 days of treatment (or no treatment). A significant augmentation of the local GVHR was observed among the ISO-treated patients (44.1 +/- 19.1 vs 61 +/- 37.1 for 1 g ISO, P less than 0.05; 42.1 +/- 20.1 vs 58.9 +/- 23.8 for 4 g of ISO, P less than 0.01). This was not so for patients who received no treatment (38.5 +/- 20.4 vs 38.3 +/- 21.2; P greater than 0.1). Nine patients treated with 1 g of ISO and 5 treated with 4 g of ISO/day, who were initially characterized by a negative local GVHR (less than 50 mm3), converted to a positive reaction (greater than or equal to 50 mm3) compared to none of the patients who received no treatment. Two patients treated with 1 g of ISO and 2 patients treated with 4 g, who initially had a positive GVHR, demonstrated further augmentation (greater than or equal to 50% increase) in the GVHR after 7 days of treatment. In 2 patients (one in each treated group) the ISO induced a suppression of the GVHR from positive to negative. Incubation of the patients' lymphocytes in vitro with ISO (100 micrograms/ml X 1 hr) failed to induce augmentation of the GVHR and did not correlate with the in vivo effect in the same patients. These results demonstrate an immunomodulatory effect of ISO in cancer patients and lend further support to the use of this drug as an immunomodulating therapy among cancer patients.

Topics: Animals; Graft Enhancement, Immunologic; Graft vs Host Reaction; Humans; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Neoplasms; Rats; T-Lymphocytes

By multiple criteria, inosiplex-a reputed stimulator of virus-sensitized lymphocytes-had no demonstrable therapeutic effects in a preliminary controlled study of patients with localized herpes zoster and cancer. Lymphocytes from the six drug-treated patients were no more responsive to varicella-zoster antigen and phytohemagglutinin than were lymphocytes from seven patients who received a placebo.

Topics: Child; Clinical Trials as Topic; Double-Blind Method; Herpes Zoster; Humans; Immunity, Cellular; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Neoplasms; Placebos

Patients with various conditions associated with immunologic deficiency (cancer, radiotherapy, surgery, burns, aging, prodromal Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, were treated with inosiplex (INPX) at a dose of 3-4 g/day for periods of time ranging from 1 week to several months. Patients were evaluated clinically, and immunologically with the following assays; natural killer (NK) cytotoxicity, T-lymphocyte count, mitogen-induced proliferation, E rosettes, and skin test reactivity. The data resulting from this large and varied population were quite consistent and reproducible, and indicated that INPX treatment was effective in simultaneously reducing the incidence of complications, infections and mortality while enhancing the immune status of the patient. It has therefore been concluded that an immunopharmacologically active agent such as INPX can elicit important clinical benefits in patients with disorders of diverse etiology, perhaps through modulation of an immunologic defect that is common to a variety of seemingly unrelated conditions.

Topics: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome; Adult; Aged; Antineoplastic Agents; Burns; Humans; Immunity; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Kinetics; Middle Aged; Models, Biological; Neoplasms; Postoperative Complications

Topics: Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine; Azathioprine; Cyclophosphamide; Cyclosporins; Glucocorticoids; Gold; Humans; Immunity; Immunotherapy; Inosine Pranobex; Levamisole; Lipopolysaccharides; Neoplasms; Penicillamine; Polyribonucleotides

Topics: Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine; Adjuvants, Immunologic; Animals; Aziridines; Benzimidazoles; Cimetidine; Ditiocarb; Humans; Hypoxanthines; Inosine Pranobex; Leucine; Levamisole; Mice; Neoplasms; Pyran Copolymer; Tuftsin

Topics: Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine; Adjuvants, Immunologic; Animals; Aziridines; Ditiocarb; Glucans; Humans; Hypoxanthines; Immunity; Inosine Pranobex; Interferon Inducers; Leucine; Levamisole; Lynestrenol; Neoplasms

These data demonstrate that both Isoprinosine and NPT 15392 are active nontoxic biological response modifiers that qualify for studies in cancer patients. Because of their immunomodulating properties, these agents are expected to be most appropriate in the treatment of immunosuppressed patients who are prone to infection or recurrence following cytoreductive therapy.

Topics: Adjuvants, Immunologic; Animals; Humans; Hypoxanthines; Immunity; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Lymphocytes; Neoplasms; Rats; Species Specificity

The in vitro effects of ISO on the immune responses of cancer patients were investigated. Forty seven patients with primary tumors (26 lung carcinoma, 14 breast adenocarcinoma, 7 melanoma) were studied. Concanavalin A (ConA)-induced lymphocyte proliferation, natural killer cell (NK) activity, and monocyte chemotaxis were measured. In 40 of the 47 patients (85%), ConA-induced lymphocyte proliferation was depressed; NK activity was depressed in 32 (68%), and monocyte chemotaxis was found to be depressed in 36 (77%). For in vitro studies, an optimum concentration of ISO (100 micrograms/ml per 10(6) cells) was used to treat peripheral blood mononuclear cells. In the presence of ISO, all three parameters were restored to normal or near normal levels in those that were depressed. Under these preincubation conditions in vitro treatment of mononuclear cells from the peripheral blood of normal individuals with ISO had no effect on their activities in the three assays. Similar effects on these three immune parameters were observed when 24 h supernatants obtained from patients' mononuclear cells pretreated with ISO were employed in these assays.

Topics: Adjuvants, Immunologic; Cell Division; Chemotaxis, Leukocyte; Concanavalin A; Humans; Immunity; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Killer Cells, Natural; Lymphocytes; Monocytes; Neoplasms; Time Factors

The data of this experiment show that Levamisole moderately stimulates T-lymphocyte proliferation and efficiency in vitro and methisoprinol markedly does so when both drugs act in combination with PHA in subjects with severely impaired cell-mediated responsiveness, whereas they do not exert any effect on lymphocytes in normal subjects. B-lymphocyte in vitro responsiveness does not appear to be affected by the immunomodulators, except for some cases of cancer of the stomach wherein B-lymphocyte responsiveness is stimulated in vitro by Levamisole and more evidently by Methisoprinol. These data support the use of Methisoprinol or Levamisole in therapy, and further investigations regarding the mechanisms whereby they might act and the dose-effect relationship which might show to be important for the type of desired immunomodulation would appear appropriate.

Topics: Breast Neoplasms; Cell Division; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Humans; In Vitro Techniques; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Levamisole; Neoplasms; Rectal Neoplasms; Rosette Formation; Stomach Neoplasms; T-Lymphocytes

The authors investigated the state of immunity, before and after surgery, in a group of 6 methisoprinol-treated patients and in a 10-patient control group both affected by malignant neoplasia. All the patients exhibited various degrees of immuno-depression. Versus the control group the group treated with 1-g methisoprinol injections at the dosage of 4 g daily for 7 days after surgery showed a positive effect on post-surgical immuno-depression.

Topics: Humans; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Inosine; Inosine Pranobex; Neoplasms; Postoperative Complications; Surgical Procedures, Operative