For this purpose, TIL lines and freshly isolated TILs obtained from 16 patients with solid cancer (three melanoma, seven primary colorectal carcinoma, four hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer and two lung cancer) were evaluated for (a) expression of IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) both at the RNA level and on the cell surface by flow cytometric analysis and (b) their proliferative activity in response to IL-2 and the role of IL-2R subunits in the IL-2-driven TIL growth. This evidence concerns the gene IL2RA and melanoma.