Abstract:

Objective    To evaluate the effectiveness of intra-dermal injection of dendritic cells combined with intra-vesical perfusion of epirubicin (EPI) on preventing recurrence of bladder cancer after TURBT. Methods    106 bladder cancer patients were randomly divided into two groups after TURBT， group A was treated with intradermal injection of dendritic cells combined with intravesical perfusion of EPI, while group B was treated only with intra-vesical perfusion of EPI. All patients were followed up for at least 2 years. T-lymphocyte subsets,tumor recurrence rates and adverse reactions of patients were observed and compared.  Results    CD3+, CD4+ and CD4+／CD8+ of group A increased after dendritic cells therapy. Compared with that before the therapy and that of group B, the differences were significant(P<0.05). 2-year recurrence rates of group A and group B were 10% and 25.8%, respectively. The difference was significant(P<0.05). 3 patients of group A developed modent dermal inflammation after  dendritic cells therapy. Conclusions    Compared with simple intra-vesical perfusion of EPI , DC therapy combined with intravesical perfusion of EPI can effectively reduce 2-year recurrence rate of bladder cancer after TURBT.Therefore, DC immune therapy combined with intra-vesical chemotherapy provides a new way for the adjuvant treatment of bladder cancer.

Key words: Dendritic cells therapy; Epirubicin; Intravesical perfusion;  Recurrence rates; TURBT