A Report of Three Patients Treated with Immunocell Therapy with Imatinib Mesylate

Abstract

Background: Immunocell therapy has been applied to patients with refractory cancer in clinical trials or as an unconventional cancer therapy, however the efficacy is still limited. To improve this efficacy, a combination therapy may be beneficial. Molecularly-targeted therapy acts directly on neoplasm cells to suppress their growth without causing myelosuppression. Case Report: Recently, we encountered three patients treated by immunocell therapy with imatinib mesylate (Glivec®). One patient was diagnosed as having Philadelphia chromosome (Ph) (+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and had a relapse-free survival of more than 24 months. The other two were diagnosed as having GIST; a partial response was observed in one which lasted more than 21 months, while the other's disease has been stabilized for more than 25 months. No side-effects were observed, other than those mentioned in the directions for the use of imatinib. Conclusion: Immunocell therapy may have a potent therapeutic effect when used in combination with molecularly-targeted therapy, which has few side-effects.