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Even it is undesirable effect, immune deficiency phenomenon is inevitable during the prolonged course of cancer therapy. With advancement of immunology, non-specific immune stimulation was attempted for the treatment of malignancy in man. Also experimental studies revealed retarded tumor growth as well as inhibition of tumor incidence in animals with the same method. This experimental studies were carried out to observe the retarded growth of tumor in mice, subjected to chemotherapy or combined chemotherapy with BCG treatment. Solid Ehrlich tumor or solid Sarcoma 180 was transplanted in the ICR mouse. Chemotherapy or combined chemotherapy with BCG treatment was started under the scheduled time table, then tumor was excised on 30 days after implantation. Excised mass was weighed and mean value was obtained from each experimental group, and compared with control. Obtained results were as follows. Mild retarded growth of tumor was seen in BCG treatment groups compared with control. But retarded growth dose not exceed to chemotheraphy group. Enhanced retardation of tumor growth was seen in most of the combined chemotherapy and BCG treatment group, except three of combined treatment groups: bleomycin treatment in solid Ehrlich tumor group, bleomycin or mitomycin treatment in solid Sarcoma 180 group. The above results showed that mere BCG injection is unsatisfactory for the treatment of malignancy, however, combined treatment of anticancer drug with BCG injection yield more inhibitory effect for the tumor growth than chemotherapy alone. It is suggeseted that immune suppression due to chemothereapy was reactivated by nonspecific stimulation of BCG treatment, thus host resistance against malignancy ’was ’strengthened, and at the same time killer cell or sensitized lymphocyte, are produced in the immune system which may attack directly to the cancer cells.
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