SOLUBLE INTERLEUKIN-2 RECEPTOR SERUM LEVELS IN MYCOSIS-FUNGOIDES - CORRELATION WITH CLINICAL STAGE

Background. In a variety of non-Hodgkin lymphomas, a correlation between soluble interleukin-2 receptor levels (sIL-2R) and clinical stage is demonstrable. In mycosis fungoides (MF), two findings raise the question as to a similar correlation: (1) a proportion of tumor cells express IL-2 receptor and (2) sIL-2R is detectable in serum. Methods. sIL-2R were measured in patients with MF (n = 88) and atopic dermatitis (AD) (n = 14) by the enzyme immunoassay technique. Patients with AD served as controls. Cases of MF were classified according to the TNM staging classification. Results. Sera of patients with MF with stages III, IVa, and IVb showed significantly higher values than those of stage I or II and controls. Conclusions. Although a close and significant correlation was found between sIL-2R levels and stage of disease in MF, it is still not clear whether elevated sIL-2R levels reflect disease activity or T-cell activation due to concomitant immunologic processes.