Effect of T-lymphocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood on disease-free survival of patients with different molecular subtypes of breast cancer / 中国肿瘤临床

ABSTRACT

Objective:To determine the distribution of T-lymphocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood and its relationship with disease-free survival (DFS) of patients with different molecular subtypes of invasive breast cancer (IBC). Methods:Data and plasma samples of 372 female patients with IBC treated at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital and Institute between January 2008 and August 2009 were obtained. CD4+/CD8+ratio and the amount of regulatory T cells (Treg cells) and natural killer cells (NK cells) were measured through flow cytometry. Results:A total of 133 (35.8%), 124 (33.3%), 48 (12.9%), and 67 cases (18.0%) presented luminal type A, luminal type B, HER-2 over-expression, and triple-negative type breast cancer (TNBC), respectively. In TNBC, a longer DFS was observed when the peripheral CD4+/CD8+ratio was high or when the level of Treg cells was low (CD4+/CD8+P0.05). The level of NK cells is unrelated to the DFS of breast cancer with the four molecular subtypes (P>0.05). Conclusion:CD4+/CD8+ratio and the amount of Treg cells in peripheral blood may predict DFS of TNBC but are not considered as independent prognostic factors.