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Tumor-associated Immunoglobulins in Pulmonary Carcinoma¹

Veterans Administration Hospital, Palo Alto, California 94303, and Department of Pathology, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305

In view of the uncertainty of location and significance of immunoglobulin in tumors found by elution or rosette formation (as reported in the literature), the presence of IgG, IgM, and IgA in human carcinoma of the lung was studied by means of the peroxidase-antiperoxidase method. Surgically obtained specimens from patients with known survival times were used in this study. Membranous as well as cytoplasmic location of IgG was demonstrated more frequently than was that of IgA or IgM. The number of tumor cells carrying immunoglobuin varied greatly, even within a given case. Albumin could be demonstrated in tumor cells in 10 of 20 specimens, but there was poor correlation with immunoglobuin. In some instances, only the necrotic part of the tumor or the stroma was immunoreactive. The results are discussed and suggest that Fc receptors are not involved in the binding of immunoglobin by pulmonary carcinoma cells.

¹ Supported by the Veterans Administration and by USPHS Contract NO1-CM4004 from the National Cancer Institute.

Received 2/28/77. Accepted 9/ 8/77.