Clinical efficacy of tumor antigen-pulsed DC treatment for high-grade glioma patients: evidence from a meta-analysis.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:The effectiveness of immunotherapy for high-grade glioma (HGG) patients remains controversial. To evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of dendritic cells (DCs) alone in the treatment of HGG, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis in terms of patient survival with relevant published clinical studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS:A total of 409 patients, including historical cohorts, nonrandomized and randomized controls with HGG, were selected for the meta-analysis. RESULTS:The treatment of HGG with DCs was associated with a significantly improved one-year survival (OS) (p0.05), whereas CD56+ lymphocyte subset were significantly increased after DC treatment (p = 0.0001). Furthermore, the levels of IFN-γ in the peripheral blood of HGG patients, which reflect the immune function of the patients, were significantly increased after DC immunotherapy (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS:Thus, our meta-analysis showed that DC immunotherapy markedly prolongs survival rates and progression-free time, enhances immune function, and improves the efficacy of the treatment of HGG patients.