Interferon-α (IFN-α) plays an important role in the treatment of various human malignancies, among them renal cell carcinoma (Dorr, 1993); however, response to IFN-α is often impaired by the development of IFN-resistance (Devita et al, 1989), mechanisms of which are poorly understood. This evidence concerns the gene IFNA1 and renal cell carcinoma.