ABSTRACT
Since the turn of the century, scientists have been examining the possibility of using antitumor immunity as a means of treating cancer. Early examples of tumor immunotherapy can be found in the 19th century, when researchers reported tumor regression in cancer patients after exposure to syphilis. In the early 20th century, William B.Coley began to treat cancer patients with bacterial extracts, referred to as “Coley’s toxins ” [1]. Conceptually, exposure to infectious agents would activate the general systemic immune response, a portion of which might be directed non-specifically against the tumor. The action of these bacterial extracts indicated that the immune responses elicited likely involved cytokines with tumoricidal activity.
