Cytokines in Cancer Therapy

Cytokines are a broad class of proteins which regulate cellular function. They generally act in an autocrine (on the cells that produce them) or in a paracrine (on nearby cells) rather than an endocrine manner (on distant cells or organs). They have a variety of roles: some cytokines have a role in fighting infection and in mounting an immune response; others mediate cell differentiation and embryogenesis and others promote cell growth or even inhibit it. Recent advances in technology have made it possible to isolate these proteins in sufficient quantities to conduct proper laboratory experiments and clinical studies. Thus, the foundations have been laid for a new form of cancer therapy and for understanding how abnormalities in the cytokine network could contribute to the process of malignancy. This book is the first to bring together the basic research and to discuss it in the context of its present and potential clinical applications. It examines the principles of cytokine therapy, individual cytokines or cytokine groups, the cytokine network and how interactions between cytokines could be exploited clinically. The final part considers future prospects.
The book is intended for physicians training in, or updating themselves in the changing field of modern oncology, for scientists and support staff in cancer research and for those involved in the pharmaceutical and biological products industries.