Immunology of prostatic carcinoma-an overview.

The possibility of altering the course of prostatic cancer by immunologic means requires a clear understanding of the host-tumor relationship in this disease. Available data suggest that prostatic tumors contain both prostate-specific and tumor-specific antigens, although evidence on the latter is still debatable. Patients with prostatic cancer often show nonspecific depression of their cell-mediated immunocompetence, as do patients with many other forms of cancer. The question of whether prostatic cancers are immunogenic; that is, whether they elicit a specific immunologic response, remains unanswered.