Prolonged disease-free period in patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer after adoptive transfer of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes.

Thirteen patients with epithelial ovarian cancer, who did not show any detectable lesion after cisplatin-containing chemotherapy following primary operation, were treated with adoptive transfer of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL group). Eleven patients with almost equivalent conditions of disease, who were treated with only chemotherapy following primary operation, served as a control group. The median time of follow-up was 36 (range, 23-44) months in the TIL group and 33 (range, 14-48) months in the control group. The estimated 3-year overall survival rate of disease-free patients in the TIL group and in the control group was 100% and 67.5%, respectively. A significant difference was noticed between the overall survival rate of the TIL group and the control group (P < 0.01). Furthermore, the estimated 3-year disease-free survival rate of the patients in the TIL group and in the control group was 82.1% and 54.5%, respectively. The disease-free survival rate of patients in the TIL group and in the control group was significantly different (P < 0.05). These results suggest that the adoptive transfer of TILs after all chemotherapy has been finished might be one promising method to achieve complete cure of advanced epithelial ovarian cancer.