巨噬细胞被细菌内毒素激发而分泌出一种蛋白,即肿瘤坏死因子(TNF),其治疗原理可追溯到十九世纪后期,当时医师们已注意到肿瘤自发性消退的病人常有细菌感染在1893年,纽约一位医师William Coley开始用多种细菌产物治疗癌症病人,这种产物即Coley毒素。用这种毒素治疗后,病人通常发生高热,有些病人的肿瘤消退。 Macrophages are stimulated by bacterial endotoxins to secrete a protein called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). Its therapeutic principle can be traced back to the late 19th century, when physicians have noticed that patients with spontaneous tumor regression often have bacterial infections. In 1893, a physician in New York, William Coley, began treating cancer patients with a variety of bacterial products, Coley’s toxin. After treatment with this toxin, the patient usually has a high fever, and some patients’ tumors have subsided.