Analysis of Circulating Immune Biomarkers by Race in Men with Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Treated with Sipuleucel-T.

Among racial subgroups, Black men have the highest prostate cancer-specific death rate, yet they also exhibit prolonged overall survival compared to White men when treated with standard therapies, including sipuleucel-T. Differential immune responses may play a role in these observations. We compared circulating immune markers from fifty-four men (18 Black and 36 White men) with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer who received sipuleucel-T and were enrolled on an immune monitoring registry. Markers included longitudinal serum cytokine concentrations, humoral responses, and cellular immunity from baseline until 52 weeks after sipuleucel-T administration. Black men had statistically significantly higher median concentrations of TH2-type (IL-4, IL-10, and IL-13) and inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-12, and IL-6) compared to PSA-matched White men both at baseline and 52 weeks after sipuleucel-T (2-sided P < .05). No differences by race were seen in either the antigen-specific T cell response or in the humoral responses to the immunizing antigen PA2024 and select secondary antigens.