[Changes and clinical significance of innate-like lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the percentages and correlations of innate-like lymphocyte subsets, αβT cells and B2 cells in peripheral blood of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and normal individuals.

METHODS

A total of 16 healthy controls, 5 NSCLC first-visit patients and 15 NSCLC stable-state patients were included to take the peripheral blood samples. Flow cytometry was performed to detect the percentages of invariant natural killer T (iNKT), γδT, B1, αβT and B2 cell subsets in peripheral blood lymphocytes.

RESULTS

The percentage of iNKT cells in the stable-state patients was significantly lower than that of the healthy people and first-visit patients. In addition, the percentage of αβT cells in the stable-state patients was significantly higher than that of the healthy people. The fist-visit patients had a markedly higher percentage of γδT cells than the stable-state patients, but a significantly lower percentage of B1 cells than the healthy people. There was an obviously positive correlation between iNKT cells and γδT cells in the stable-state patients. We also found a significantly positive correlation between B1 cells and B2 cells in both stable-state patients and healthy people.

CONCLUSION

The percentages of innate-like lymphocyte subsets in patients with NSCLC are in disequilibrium.