Patent ID: 7951365

Claim:
A method for treating a patient suffering from a neoplastic disease selected from gall bladder cancer, hepato cellular cancer, ovarian cancer, small intestine cancer, lung cancer, mesothelioma, breast cancer, kidney cancer, pancreas cancer, prostate cancer, carcinoid cancer, leiomyosarcoma, or metastasis thereof, the method comprising: a) isolating tumour-reactive T-lymphocytes from either the patient's blood, or from the patient's lymph nodes, wherein tumour-reactive T-lymphocytes isolated from the patient's lymph nodes are obtained by: i) identifying in a patient one or more sentinel and/or metinel lymph nodes draining a neoplasm selected from gall bladder cancer, hepato cellular cancer, ovarian cancer, small intestine cancer, lung cancer, mesothelioma, breast cancer, kidney cancer, pancreas cancer, prostate cancer, carcinoid cancer, leiomyosarcoma, or metastasis thereof, ii) resecting the one or more nodes and, optionally all or part of the tumour or metastasis, and iii) isolating tumour-reactive T-lymphocytes from said lymph nodes; b) in vitro expanding said tumour-reactive T-lymphocytes isolated from either the patient's blood or lymph nodes using: i) a first phase of stimulating tumour-reactive CD4+ helper and/or CD8+ T-lymphocytes with tumour-derived antigen together with at least one substance having agonistic activity towards an IL-2 receptor to promote survival of tumour-reactive CD4+ helper and/or CD8+ T-lymphocytes; and ii) a second phase of activating and promoting growth of tumour-reactive CD4+ helper and/or CD8+ T-lymphocytes, wherein the second phase is initiated when a CD25 cell surface marker or IL-2R marker is down-regulated on T-lymphocytes; and c) administering the thus obtained tumour-reactive T-lymphocytes to the patient.