ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors begin with the topic of tumour immunity even though it is still unclear how successful the immune system is in either preventing cancer or modifying its behaviour. Graft versus host disease is an unwanted side effect of bone marrow transplantation that results in immune mediated damage. Anatomical pathologists have long observed and described the presence of inflammatory cells, notably lymphocytes, macrophages and eosinophils, in and around cancers. This finding has been correlated with tumour regression, for example in malignant melanoma, and with improved prognosis. Tissue destruction occurs through mechanisms comparable to those operating in type II (antibody-mediated cytotoxicity), type III (immune complex-mediated) or type IV (cell-mediated) hypersensitivity. Goodpasture’s syndrome, in which the basement membrane of glomerular capillaries and pulmonary alveoli is attacked by complement fixing antibodies, is the classic example of type II hypersensitivity.
