Phenotype Frequency of Human Leukocyte Antigens in Japanese Patients with Renal Cell Carcinoma who Responded to Interferon-α Treatment

Background: Because of the high cost, low overall response rate (10% to 20%), and poor quality of life during interferon therapy for advanced renal cell carcinoma, it is important to distinguish patients likely to respond to treatment. The expression of human leukocyte antigens (HLA) may serve as a clinical marker for response to interferon treatment in patients with renal cell carcinoma.
Methods: We compared HLA phenotype frequency in 37 Japanese patients with advanced renal cell Carcinoma who showed a favorable response to interferon-α, in 93 similar patients, before treatment, who did not receive interferon-α, and in 939 healthy Japanese volunteers (historical control data).
Results: Six HLA antigens, B35, Bw48, Bw60, DRw6, DRw8, and DR9, were expressed at a significantly lower rate in the 93 pretreatment patients with renal cell carcinoma, compared with the control subjects. Three HLA antigens, excluding Bw60, DRw6, and DRw8, were expressed at a significantly higher rate in the patients who responded to interferon-α, compared with the pretreatment patients with renal cell carcinoma and control subjects.
Conclusion: Three HLA antigens, B35, Bw48, and DR9, were expressed at a significantly higher rate in patients with renal cell carcinoma who showed a sensitivity to interferon-α, and could be important markers for clinical response to this antitumor therapy.