Development of an Automatic Measurement Method for CD8 and PD-1 Positive T Cells Using Image Analysis Software.

BACKGROUND/AIM: With the progress in cancer immunotherapy using immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy, histological observations of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) status are needed to evaluate the antitumor effect of ICB using imaging analysis software.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sections obtained from colorectal cancer and gastric cancer patients with more than 500 single nucleotide variants were stained with anti-CD8 and anti-PD-1 antibodies. Based on our own algorithm and imaging analysis software, an automatic TIL measurement method was established and compared to the manual counting methods.

RESULTS

In the CD8 T cell number measurement, there was a good correlation (r=0.738 by Pearson test) between the manual and automated counting methods. However, in the PD-1 T cell measurement, there was a large difference in TIL numbers in both groups. After adjustment of the parameter settings, the correlation between the manual and automated methods in the PD-1 T cell measurements improved (r=0.668 by Pearson test).

CONCLUSION

An imaging software-based automatic measurement could be a simple and useful tool for evaluating the therapeutic effect of cancer immunotherapies in terms of TIL status.