[Lymphocyte subsets and response of breast cancer and benign mammary disease to PHA].

The lymphocyte counts, subsets and response to PHA in the peripheral blood of patients with breast cancer (stage I-III) and with a benign mammary disease have been evaluated. In the breast cancer cases, the lymphocyte counts and stimulation index of PHA increased gradually as the stages advanced but there was no statistical significance. The ratio and number of OKT 4 positive lymphocytes were significantly lower in patients with breast cancer (stage I) between 40 and 59 years old than in patients with benign mammary diseases between the same ages. This impairment of OKT 4 in breast cancer (stage I) cases was considered as either a cause of the carcinoma or as a reflection of the environment of steroid hormones.